Effect of Glass Fiber Tex on the Torsional Properties of FW-GFRP Shafts

Abstract

Glass fiber reinforced plastics (GFRP) have been used in a wide range of industrial fields due to the high strength and failure strain of glass fibers; their mechanical properties and price are well balanced as well. To investigate the effect of the glass fiber tex (i.e., mass measured in grams per 1000 m of bundle) on the torsional properties of GFRP shafts, five kinds of glass fiber rovings (280, 800, 1150, 2220, and 2300 tex) were used as reinforcement, and GFRP shafts were fabricated by the filament winding method. As a result, it was determined that high strength GFRP shafts with excellent surface properties could be fabricated using glass fiber rovings with lower tex values. Furthermore, the shear strengths of GFRP shafts using 280, 800, and 1150 tex glass fiber rovings were higher than that of the GFRP shaft using HME-glass fiber (high strength glass fiber) roving for filament winding.