The Long-Term Interfacial Evolution and Prediction of Carbon- and Glass-Fiber-Reinforced Epoxy Hybrid Rods under a Hygrothermal Environment

Abstract

In order to promote the engineering applications of carbon- and glass-fiber-reinforced epoxy hybrid rods, it is necessary to fully understand its long-term hygrothermal durability. In the present study, the water absorption behaviors of a hybrid rod in a water immersion environment are studied experimentally, the degradation rules of the mechanical properties are obtained, and establishing a life prediction model is attempted. The water absorption of the hybrid rod confirms to the classical Fick’s diffusion model, and the water absorption concentration is determined by radial position, immersion temperature, and immersion time. In addition, the radial position of water molecules diffused into the rod is positively correlated with the diffusion concentration. The short-beam shear strength of the hybrid rod decreased significantly after 360 days of exposure; this is because water molecules interact with the polymer through hydrogen bonds to produce bound water during the immersion process, leading to resin matrix hydrolysis and plasticization, as well as interfacial debonding. In addition, the ingression of water molecules caused degradation in the viscoelastic behavior of the resin matrix in hybrid rods. The glass transition temperature of hybrid rods decreased by 17.4% after exposure at 80 °C for 360 days. The Arrhenius equation was used calculate the long-term life of short-beam shear strength in the actual service temperature based on the time–temperature equivalence theory. The stable strength retention for SBSS was found to be 69.38%, which is a useful durability design parameter for hybrid rods in civil engineering structures.