Self-healing composites: healing using rapid cure resin systems

Advanced materials are used for various end-use applications and are often expensive due to higher raw material costs. Such materials are produced with intention of having a greater life expectancy, but the smallest crack may start failure and disables the product to be used for a longer period. Despite the vast use of composites and their use in a wide range of activities, there is no permanent solution for their vulnerability to deterioration. Whenever a microscopic flaw or microcrack in the components is not identified and fixed promptly, it might lead to early failure. These microcracks once developed continue growing in the structure of a material and are imperceptible. They are quite difficult to fix manually and usually end in a terrible malfunction in the life of the product. In such situations introduction of self-healing materials comes to the rescue which enables high-end products to heal on their own. Self-healing refers to the process of recovery from trauma which initiates cracks. Self-healing is motivated and led by the product itself, and is frequently guided solely by the material’s geometry, chemistry, and mechanics. It also leads to increased dependability, lowers maintenance costs, and lengthens substance life. For more than a decade, this field has seen tremendous development and several noteworthy accomplishments have been made. Researchers tend to introduce self-healing abilities in a wide range of materials, such as concrete mixes, polymers, ceramics, steel, and composites. Modern self-healing materials include metals, rubber, plastics, polymeric materials, glass, ceramic ware, composites, elastomers, reversible polymers, shape-memory materials, and cementitious materials.