Our colleague participated in an international research in cooperation with Bristol Composites Institute (University of Bristol) and the Department of Polymer Engineering (Budapest University of Technology and Economics). Their study has been published recently in Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing.

The effects of test temperature and moisture on the pseudo-ductility of glass and carbon fibre reinforced hybrid composites were examined in detail. Test temperature had slight impact on the pseudo-ductility of the hybrid composites and the desired metal-like yielding was achieved. However, the presence of moisture changed significantly the mechanical properties of the glass layers. Therefore, the glass layers in the hybrid specimens could not withstand the applied loads and failed prematurely. The premature failure of the glass layers resulted in catastrophic failure of the hybrid specimens without traces of pseudo-ductile behaviour.