Toughened carbon fibre-reinforced polymer composites with nanoparticle-modified epoxy matrices

In the current work, the microstructure and fracture performance of carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites based upon matrices of an anhydride-cured epoxy resin (formulated with a reactive diluent), and containing silica nanoparticles and/or polysiloxane core–shell rubber (CSR) nanoparticles, were investigated. Double cantilever beam tests were performed in order to determine the interlaminar fracture energy of the CFRP composites,...