Crystallization Analysis for Fiber/Polymer Composites.

The peculiar nucleation behavior of low thermal conductivity polymer matrixes and the particular morphologies around fibers found in several composites, invalidate some assumptions invoked in the general description of the solidification kinetics of polycrystalline substances. The model of solidification universally adopted for polycrystalline substances, originally developed for metals, needs to be adapted also to account for large differences between polymers and fibers in thermoplastic composites. The extension of the classical phase transitions theory to fiber/polymer composites, in view of their specific thermal properties, allows to achieve reliable information on crystallization behavior and microstructure inside composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]