Electrical characterization of carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites

Abstract

Carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP) composites are a promising alternative to metals for aircraft structures. The applicability of CFRP composites to electromagnetic shielding and immunity to lightning strikes depends largely on their electrical conductivity. In this work CFRP laminate were prepared by using pre-preg carbon fiber (fiber pre-impregnated with epoxy resin), and their electrical conductivity and shielding effectiveness (SE) were measured. Four-point probe method is used to measure electrical conductivity of CFRP as this method avoids errors due to contact resistance. SE is a measure of how effectively a material blocks an electromagnetic field and is measured in X-band (8.2-12.4 GHz) frequency using a Vector Network Analyzer (VNA). Composite slabs made with ten plies of prepregs, aligned unidirectionally seen to provide better electromagnetic attentation (> 90\%).