On the behavior of functionally graded shape memory polymer composites under thermal coupling

Abstract

Abstract Shape memory polymer composites (SMPC), which are a type of stimuli-responsive material, show better mechanical properties than pure shape memory polymers. However, different engineering applications have different requirements for the fiber content of SMPC. For example, some parts of the structure require more fibers to enhance strength, while other parts require fewer fibers to maintain deformability. In order to solve this problem, a functionally graded shape memory polymer composite (FG-SMPC) is proposed in this work. The contents of the fibers for the FG-SMPC can be changed along the geometric dimension of the material, enabling different performance requirements to be met in different parts of the structure. Based on the constitutive model of the SMP and the mechanics of composite materials, the mechanical behaviors of the FG-SMPC under thermal loading are discussed. The results show that such materials exhibit gradient behaviors for both the intensity and shape memory effect with different gradient distributions.