FIBERS AND POLYMERS, cilt.20, sa.4, ss.725-731, 2019 (SCI-Expanded)
In recent years, researches have made many efforts to improve the frictional properties of high performance fabrics by using different methods such as applying natural rubber latex, developing metal oxide nano-rods and treating with shear thickening fluids. Even though these methods have provided beneficial results for enhanced frictional behavior, they exhibit some drawbacks in terms of flexibility, stability and ease of application. For this reason, an attempt has been made in this research to tune the frictional properties of carbon fabric through a simple process such as coating the fabric with boron carbide particles in polyethylene glycol medium. The surface friction as well as yarn-to-yarn friction were evaluated and it was found that the presence of only polyethylene glycol (PEG) or the mixture of PEG/boron carbide enhances the surface friction and yarn-to-yarn friction in the fabric. In addition, the role of boron carbide concentration used in the treatment process was investigated. It was found that the friction in carbon fabric can be controlled by altering the amount of boron carbide particles used in the treatment process.