Viscoelastic and drop-weight impact properties of an acrylic-matrix composite and a conventional thermoset composite – A comparative study.

Highlights • Benchmarking of infused thermoplastic composite (TPC) against a thermoset composite. • TPC produced using novel Elium® resin achieved superior damping characteristics. • Superior damping performance was not reflected in impact damage resistance (IDR). • Elium® is acrylic based and may be prone to strain-dependent embrittlement. • The nature of polymer chain motion determines the correlation of damping and IDR. Abstract Novel reactive thermoplastic resin systems such as Elium® have attracted significant research attention for composite applications because they combine the low-cost processibility of thermosets and the recyclability of TPs. In this work, the viscoelastic and impact behaviours of glass fibre-reinforced composites, containing Elium® and a commercial epoxy matrix were evaluated. To complement observations from both characterisation techniques, the fracture characteristics of both materials were also investigated by scanning electron microscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]