Bioinspired interfaces for improved carbon fibre composite performance

将碳纤维嵌入聚合物基体中的碳纤维复合材料正逐渐取代钢铁等传统材料。例如，复合材料占波音787梦想飞机的50%，从而使燃油经济性提高20%。这些材料的损伤容限有很大的提高空间。目前，对纤维基体界面的基本认识不足，限制了新复合材料系统的发展，以克服损伤容限问题。该项目从大自然中汲取灵感，对碳纤维复合材料中的界面进行基本了解，并通过模型引导的表面和界面工程优化其行为。

Carbon fibre composites, where carbon fibres are embedded in a polymer matrix, are gradually replacing traditional materials such as steel. For example, composites make up 50 per cent of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner, resulting in a 20 per cent improvement in fuel economy. There is significant scope for improving the damage tolerance of these materials. A fundamental lack of understanding around the fibre matrix interface currently limits the development of new composite systems to overcome the problems with damage tolerance. This project takes inspiration from nature to develop a fundamental understanding of the interfaces within carbon fibre composites and optimise their behaviour via model-guided surface and interface engineering.