Microstructural analysis of Bulk Molding Compounds and correlation with the flexural strength

Abstract

In this study, the influence of the glass fiber (GF) content on the microstructure and flexural strength of bulk molding compounds (BMCs) is investigated. Three sets of BMCs with different weight fractions of GF (5/10/12.5 wt%) were commercially prepared and compression molded into test specimens. The microstructure of the composites was analysed by scanning electron microscopy and further quantitatively characterized by Voronoi analysis in order to define the degree of the fiber distribution homogeneity. The experimental results were compared to the modelled microstructures. The results revealed that the fiber distribution in the composite with 5 wt% of GF is considered as the most homogeneous. Through the obtained microstructural descriptors, the fiber weight content and their distribution were correlated to the flexural strength of BMCs. The flexural strength was the highest for the composite with 10 wt% of GF.