The Impact of Laminations on the Mechanical Strength of Carbon-Fiber Composites for Prosthetic Foot Fabrication
Carbon-fiber composites are considered to be one of the suitable materials for the fabrication of prosthetic feet. However, commercially available composites-based prosthetic foot designs present several problems for lower limb amputees, such as low tensile strength, reduced impact resistance, high...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2022-10-01
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| Series: | Crystals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/12/10/1429 |
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| author | Bakhtawar Sehar Asim Waris Syed Omer Gilani Umar Ansari Shafaq Mushtaq Niaz B. Khan Mohammed Jameel M. Ijaz Khan Omar T. Bafakeeh El Sayed Mohamed Tag-ElDin |
| author_facet | Bakhtawar Sehar Asim Waris Syed Omer Gilani Umar Ansari Shafaq Mushtaq Niaz B. Khan Mohammed Jameel M. Ijaz Khan Omar T. Bafakeeh El Sayed Mohamed Tag-ElDin |
| author_sort | Bakhtawar Sehar |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Carbon-fiber composites are considered to be one of the suitable materials for the fabrication of prosthetic feet. However, commercially available composites-based prosthetic foot designs present several problems for lower limb amputees, such as low tensile strength, reduced impact resistance, high cost, and weight structure. Modulating the mechanical properties of carbon-fiber composites using a simplified method can help reduce these issues. Therefore, our present research aims to identify the impact of increasing the concentration of carbon fiber in the fabrication of carbon-fiber composites by using the hand layup method without the vacuum bagging technique. To improve the mechanical strength of carbon-fiber laminates, an increasing number of carbon-fiber layers are used in sample preparation. This study aims to determine the tensile strength of the laminates with a different number of carbon-fiber laminations. For the preparation of the sample specimen, black 100% 3 K 200 gsm carbon fiber with a cloth thickness of 0.2 mm and tensile strength of 4380 Mpa was laminated with two parts of epoxy resin Araldite<sup>®</sup> LY556 and Aradur hardener at a ratio of 100:30 to make the test specimen. The results indicated an overall improvement in the tensile strength of carbon-fiber laminates owing to the increase in the number of carbon-fiber layers in successive samples. The maximum achieved tensile strength through the present experimental protocol is 576.079 N/mm<sup>2</sup>, depicted by a prepared specimen of 10 layers of carbon fiber. Secondly, an increase in the deformation rate has also been observed by increasing the loading rate from 2 mm/min to 5 mm/min during the tensile testing of fabricated samples. These sample carbon-fiber composites can be used in the fabrication of prosthetic feet by controlling the experimental conditions. The fabricated prosthetic foot will assist in rehabilitating lower-limb amputees. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:24:55Z |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4352 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:24:55Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Crystals |
| spelling | doaj.art-11b2abc397d94c8390eca56ac56471e52023-11-23T23:38:18ZengMDPI AGCrystals2073-43522022-10-011210142910.3390/cryst12101429The Impact of Laminations on the Mechanical Strength of Carbon-Fiber Composites for Prosthetic Foot FabricationBakhtawar Sehar0Asim Waris1Syed Omer Gilani2Umar Ansari3Shafaq Mushtaq4Niaz B. Khan5Mohammed Jameel6M. Ijaz Khan7Omar T. Bafakeeh8El Sayed Mohamed Tag-ElDin9Department of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad 44000, PakistanDepartment of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad 44000, PakistanDepartment of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad 44000, PakistanDepartment of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad 44000, PakistanPakistan Institute of Medical Sciences G-8/3, Islamabad 44000, PakistanDepartment of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad 44000, PakistanDepartment of Civil Engineering, King Khalid University, Abha 61421, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Lebanese American University, Beirut P.O. Box 36, LebanonDepartment of Engineering Sciences, Jazan University, Jazan 45124, Saudi ArabiaSchool of Engineering, Future University in Egypt, New Cairo 118935, EgyptCarbon-fiber composites are considered to be one of the suitable materials for the fabrication of prosthetic feet. However, commercially available composites-based prosthetic foot designs present several problems for lower limb amputees, such as low tensile strength, reduced impact resistance, high cost, and weight structure. Modulating the mechanical properties of carbon-fiber composites using a simplified method can help reduce these issues. Therefore, our present research aims to identify the impact of increasing the concentration of carbon fiber in the fabrication of carbon-fiber composites by using the hand layup method without the vacuum bagging technique. To improve the mechanical strength of carbon-fiber laminates, an increasing number of carbon-fiber layers are used in sample preparation. This study aims to determine the tensile strength of the laminates with a different number of carbon-fiber laminations. For the preparation of the sample specimen, black 100% 3 K 200 gsm carbon fiber with a cloth thickness of 0.2 mm and tensile strength of 4380 Mpa was laminated with two parts of epoxy resin Araldite<sup>®</sup> LY556 and Aradur hardener at a ratio of 100:30 to make the test specimen. The results indicated an overall improvement in the tensile strength of carbon-fiber laminates owing to the increase in the number of carbon-fiber layers in successive samples. The maximum achieved tensile strength through the present experimental protocol is 576.079 N/mm<sup>2</sup>, depicted by a prepared specimen of 10 layers of carbon fiber. Secondly, an increase in the deformation rate has also been observed by increasing the loading rate from 2 mm/min to 5 mm/min during the tensile testing of fabricated samples. These sample carbon-fiber composites can be used in the fabrication of prosthetic feet by controlling the experimental conditions. The fabricated prosthetic foot will assist in rehabilitating lower-limb amputees.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/12/10/1429carbon-fiber compositestensile strengthdeformation rateprosthetic foot |
| spellingShingle | Bakhtawar Sehar Asim Waris Syed Omer Gilani Umar Ansari Shafaq Mushtaq Niaz B. Khan Mohammed Jameel M. Ijaz Khan Omar T. Bafakeeh El Sayed Mohamed Tag-ElDin The Impact of Laminations on the Mechanical Strength of Carbon-Fiber Composites for Prosthetic Foot Fabrication Crystals carbon-fiber composites tensile strength deformation rate prosthetic foot |
| title | The Impact of Laminations on the Mechanical Strength of Carbon-Fiber Composites for Prosthetic Foot Fabrication |
| title_full | The Impact of Laminations on the Mechanical Strength of Carbon-Fiber Composites for Prosthetic Foot Fabrication |
| title_fullStr | The Impact of Laminations on the Mechanical Strength of Carbon-Fiber Composites for Prosthetic Foot Fabrication |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Impact of Laminations on the Mechanical Strength of Carbon-Fiber Composites for Prosthetic Foot Fabrication |
| title_short | The Impact of Laminations on the Mechanical Strength of Carbon-Fiber Composites for Prosthetic Foot Fabrication |
| title_sort | impact of laminations on the mechanical strength of carbon fiber composites for prosthetic foot fabrication |
| topic | carbon-fiber composites tensile strength deformation rate prosthetic foot |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/12/10/1429 |
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