Analisis Kekuatan Uji Mekanik Komposit Serat Kevlar dan Fiberglass pada Pembuatan Radome Pesawat Hercules C-130 dengan Metode Hand Lay Up dan Vacuum Assisted Resin Infusion

Abstract

The Hercules C-130 aircraft is a heavy transport plane capable of carrying personnel and cargo to support air operations. Its construction, particularly in the radome section, is largely made of fiberglass, which makes this part of the aircraft lightweight, strong, and weather-resistant. However, the composite structure of this aircraft often suffers damage to the radome. Therefore, this research will investigate alternative materials to replace the radome of the Hercules aircraft.This research was conducted by performing bending and tensile tests on composite specimens made from synthetic fibers—Fiberglass and Kevlar—bonded with fiber resin. The aim of this study is to analyze the specimens under compressive and tensile forces and to determine the comparison between the bending strength and tensile strength of the Fiberglass and Kevlar fiber specimens using the Hand Lay-up and VARI methods.The research results show that the tensile test specimen made from fiberglass composite using the VARI method had the highest tensile strength value of 263.58 MPa, which is higher than that of the Kevlar fiber using the hand lay-up method at 176.98 MPa, the fiberglass fiber using the hand lay-up method at 232.41 MPa, and the Kevlar fiber using the VARI method at 259.12 MPa. Therefore, the fiberglass composite using the VARI method has the highest tensile strength compared to the other three specimens.Meanwhile, the highest flexural strength was found in the Kevlar fiber specimen made using the hand lay-up method, with a value of 411.5 MPa, which is higher than the fiberglass fiber using the VARI method at 264.16 MPa, the fiberglass fiber using the hand lay-up method at 238.345 MPa, and the Kevlar fiber using the VARI method at 202.13 MPa. This specimen had the highest flexural strength value.