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Our project aims to hypothesize a new material for construction purposes based off the unique structure of Kevlar. Our goal was to create a similar aramid fibre that could surpass the faults of Kevlar®.
We began our work by researching the mechanical properties of Kevlar. After finding more information about the properties of Kevlar we decided to find a way we could keep the flexibility and tensile strength of Kevlar, while also making it stronger compressively. We saw the exact capabilities of Kevlar by running tests such as the Charpy and Izod tests. We used a modelling software called Avogadro and created electronic configurations digitally.
We created the original chemical structure of Kevlar and introduced fluorine into the chemical structure. Once we completed this, we used a quantum mechanics program called MOPAC to test for the microscopic qualities of Kevlar and our new fibre, which was called polytrifluorobenzene – diaminobenzene (PTFD). Comparing the predicted microscopic qualities of both fibres, we found that the predicted compressive strength of the PTFD fibre was higher than that of Kevlar.
In conclusion, the PTFD fibre is more suited to construction than Kevlar. This fibre will allow for greater building projects in the future. While we are aware that the PTFD fibre will likely be difficult to produce, we believe the benefits of this fibre will outweigh the costs.
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