Effects of hot-wet storage aging, CNT-integration and damping layer interposition on static and fatigue interlaminar shear response ofa UD Graphite/Epoxy material system

The present work aims at experimental quantification of the effect of hot-wet storage aging on the static and fatigue interlaminar shear response of three UD Graphite-Epoxy based material systems: a control laminate, a CNT-treated laminate and a lamination including an embedded damping veil. In this context, specimens have been fabricated and tested for determination of the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) according to the relevant ASTM standard, and the effects of the above mentioned constituents on the response of non-aged (RT) and aged (HW) specimens have been investigated. The experimental data, presented in batch mode, indicated that aging leads to severe degradation of the interlaminar shear strength and relevant fatigue endurance of all material systems, whereas the CNT-treated laminate appeared to be the most sensitive configuration. In the case of non-aged specimens, CNT-treatment led to larger failure strains and a clear bilinear response, while all three material systems exhibited similar values of interlaminar shear strength.