The goal of the study was to find a cost-effective composition of a particle reinforced composite that is light in weight but has sufficient mechanical properties. The matrix of the particulate composite is unsaturated polyester resin that is reinforced with alumina trihydrate particles. Part of the alumina trihydrate proportion was replaced with hollow glass microspheres to reduce weight and save costs.
In order to find out the influence of the light filler on the physical and mechanical properties of composites, materials with different percentages of the light filler were prepared. Test specimens were cut from moulded sheets that were fabricated with vacuum assisted extruder. Tensile strength, indentation hardness measured with a Barcol impressor, and density were determined. Based on the experimental data a multi-criteria optimization problem was formulated and solved to find the optimal design of the material. Artificial neural networks and a hybrid genetic algorithm were used.
The optimal solution is given as a Pareto curve to represent the distinction between the density and selected mechanical properties of the composite material. The composite material filled with 6% hollow glass microspheres showed 3% loss in the tensile strength and 26% loss in the surface hardness compared to the composition without the filler. The weight decreased by 13% compared with the initial composition. The addition of hollow glass microspheres did not lower the net value of the material, it increased 7%.
