Feasibility of infusion processing for carbon fiber/vitrimeric epoxy composites
Barbara Palmieri, Fabrizia Cilento, Fausto Tucci, Antonio Viscusi, Alessia Serena Perna, Antonello Astarita, Michele Giordano, Eugenio Amendola, Alfonso Martone
Abstract. Carbon fiber-reinforced composites are highly valued for their exceptional mechanical properties and lightweight nature, but their environmental impact due to non-recyclable thermosetting matrices remains a critical challenge. This study explores the feasibility of integrating vitrimeric epoxy resins with carbon fibers using an infusion process to create sustainable and high-performance composites. Vitrimers, characterized by dynamic covalent bonds, enable recyclability, reprocessability, and repairability while maintaining structural integrity. In the present paper a vitrimer based on commercial epoxy system has been formulated. The vitrimer has been successfully employed for preparing carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) by liquid moulding technique, finally the vitrimer and the CFRP have been tested by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). The interface between epoxy vitrimers and carbon fibre was strong, resulting in a CFRP with a modulus of 11 GPa and a tan δ of 0.0089 at 35°C, consistent with structural composites. The reinforcement slightly reduced the mobility of the vitrimer.
Keywords
Vitrimer, Functional Composites, Infusion Process
Published online 5/7/2025, 7 pages
Copyright © 2025 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Barbara Palmieri, Fabrizia Cilento, Fausto Tucci, Antonio Viscusi, Alessia Serena Perna, Antonello Astarita, Michele Giordano, Eugenio Amendola, Alfonso Martone, Feasibility of infusion processing for carbon fiber/vitrimeric epoxy composites, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 54, pp 2419-2425, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644903599-261
The article was published as article 261 of the book Material Forming
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
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