EFFECT OF STRAIN RATE AND NANO-ZnO ADDITION ON MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF GLASS FIBER REINFORCED POLYESTER COMPOSITE

The effect of strain rate on the mechanical properties of glass fiber reinforced polyester with and without Zinc Oxide (ZnO) nano-filler was studied. Awoven roving glass fiber reinforced polyester resin composite was fabricated by hand lay-up method, andtested under four different strain rates 0.01, 0.1, 1 and 6 s-1 with four different ZnO percentages 0, 1, 2 and 3 wt.%. In addition, the fractured samples were examined using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The results indicate an increase in the strength with the increasing of strain rate and adding filler content up to 3 wt.%. It also shows an improvement on the fiber/matrix interfacial bonding at the highest strain rate and with adding ZnO nano-filler with 3 wt.%