Enhancing Properties of Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Composite for Marine Applications

The increasing demand of high strength and light weighted materials in marine applications offer opportunities to alternative fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP). The research aims at enhancing the properties of carbon-aramid fiber-reinforced polymer (CAFRP) including elastic properties at varying L/W ratio and under different load conditions. A multi-pronged methodology including simulation, Finite Element Analysis (FEA) validation, optimization using Genetic algorithm (GA) and various statistical analysis tools has been performed to provide optimized CAFRP. The study also investigates failure criteria analysis based on theory of failures. The study enlightens the analysis of optimized properties and their suitability for marine applications. It demonstrates the effectiveness of GA-driven optimization to achieve optimum properties for CAFRP. The study also discusses the potential of hybrid FRPs in long-term durability and different environmental conditions.