| abstract |
A storage vessel can include a shell that is formed by fibers wound about an axis and infused with a resin matrix. The resin matrix can include metal nanoparticles coated with a polymer and distributed within a resin. The nanoparticles provide low coefficients of thermal expansion, and the polymer coatings enhance their bonding with the resin The shells of such storage vessels provide increased tensile strength and modulus at both room and cryogenic temperatures. Such improvements stem from the higher interfacial residual thermal stress at cryogenic temperature due to their low thermal expansion properties, which in turn promotes crack branching that increases the energy dissipation of the matrix. |