Fibre-bundling in a short-fibre composite: 1. Review of literature and development of a method for controlling the degree of bundling

It has been suggested that the use of fibre bundles rather than individual fibres can improve the toughness of a short-fibre composite. A range of experimental and theoretical literature relevant to this topic is reviewed here, together with an account of techniques for analysing fibre-bundling in a short-fibre composite. It is suggested that there are limitations associated with previous experimental studies of fibre-bundling and as there is currently no satisfactory method of analysing fibre-bundling, it is necessary to produce materials with well-defined fibre-bundling. A method is presented for producing such materials. Photographs and cross-sections of a selection of these materials are shown, illustrating the variation in fibre-bundling between the materials.