Mechanical properties of polypropylene reinforced with short graphite fibers

Abstract The Mechanical properties of injection molded and compression molded graphite fiber‐reinforced polypropylenes are discussed. In general, the tensile properties of polypropylene are significantly improved by reinforcement with graphite fibers and to a greater extent than achieved by glass fiber reinforcement. The failure mechanism of these materials involved a combination of matrix fracture and debonding of the fiber‐polymer interface. The use temperature of these materials is shown to increase with increasing fiber content and the notch sensitivity is reduced.