Abstract
A finite element model has been developed based on molecular mechanics to predict the mechanical properties of single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNT). In addition, the mechanical properties of nanocomposite were investigated analytically and experimentally. This work consists of three parts; the first part is prediction of Young's modulus of single wall carbon nanotubes by molecular mechanics based finite element modeling. The second part describes the experimental work. The third part deals with the validation of the analytical part and the experimental work. The mechanical properties of SWCNT were obtained from FE. The mechanical properties of neat epoxy were experimentally determined. Both of them were used to estimate the mechanical properties of SWCNT/epoxy nanocomposite analytically. A comparison between the analytical and experimental results of SWCNT/epoxy nanocomposite has been done. The modeling and analysis of (SWCNT) were carried out using FEM by MATLAB and ANSYS software. However, in the experimental work the epoxy resin was modified by adding SWCNT with different ratio, i.e. 0, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5 and 0.7 wt.-%, respectively. The materials were characterized in tension to obtain the mechanical properties of SWCNT/epoxy nanocomposite experimentally. The results from the FE model were compared with the results in the literature and good agreement was achieved. The FE approach is a valuable tool for studying the mechanical behavior of carbon nanotubes. The results show that a nanotube weight percent of 0.3 wt.-% of SWCNT improves all mechanical properties such as tensile strength, modulus of elasticity and toughness. The weight percent greater than 0.5 wt.-% SWCNT should be avoided. To predict the mechanical properties of the composite materials analytically, it is worth considering the conventional rule of mixtures using the reasonable nanotube volume fractions and exact value of the efficiency parameter.