Effects of Different Parameters on Delamination Factor of Glass Fiber Reinforced Plastic (GFRP)

Introduction

Composite materials are basically hybrid materials formed of multiple materials in order to utilize their individual structural advantages in a single structural material. A composite material is a heterogeneous material created by the synthetic assembly of two or more components, one a selected filler of reinforcing material and the other a compatible matrix binder, in order to obtain specific characteristics and performance.

In a glass fiber reinforced composite structures, the glass fibers carry the bulk load and the matrix serves as a medium for the transfer of the load. It becomes very important to study about drilling in case of composite materials. Different tools and methods are used for drilling depending on the type of material, the size of the hole, the number of holes, and the time to complete the operation. Poor surface finish and faster tool wear led to the further study of composite machining. Unlike metals, composites need separate tools and working conditions. A number of research endeavors have been made in the recent past to fully characterize the drilling process for FRP composite materials. The efforts have been made in the direction of optimization of the operating variables and conditions for minimizing the drilling induced damage around the hole.