Effects of moisture absorption on degradation of E-glass fiber reinforced Vinyl Ester composite pipes and modelling of transient moisture diffusion using finite element analysis

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of humidity and temperature on the properties of GFRP specimens. Tubular specimens fabricated by a filament winding machine are submerged in the studied environment and the accuracy of Fick's law on moisture diffusion behaviour is studied. The results prove that decreasing the exposure temperature reduces the diffusion coefficient and absorbed moisture. To analyse the effects of moisture uptake on mechanical and physical properties, buckling tests and scanning electron microscope were used. ABAQUS is employed to simulate the moisture absorption. The outcome shows good agreements between experimental and FEA results. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.