Fatigue Behavior of a Unidirectional Non-crimp Fabric Glass Fiber Reinforced Reactive Thermoplastic Composite

Abstract

Wind turbines are being used in regions where exposure to extremely low temperatures and high winds has become the standard operating condition, which increases the demand on the turbine blade structure. Wind turbine blades are typically manufactured from glass fiber/epoxy laminates, which tend to exhibit increased brittle failure modes with decreasing operating temperatures. In order to improve the performance of wind turbine blades under extreme operating conditions, replacing conventional glass fiber/epoxy composite materials with resin-infusible glass fiber/reactive thermoplastic composite materials may provide several benefits, including improved low-temperature toughness and end-of-life recyclability. The goal of this study was to assess the fatigue performance of a resin-infused unidirectional (UD) non-crimp fabric (NCF) glass fiber/acrylic composite material at room temperature (RT) and -50°C. Tension-tension fatigue tests were conducted on UD specimens to compare the relative performance, fatigue life, and fatigue resistance. The increase in temperature during the different stages of the RT fatigue tests was monitored using a high-definition infrared camera to provide a qualitative assessment of damage evolution.