Influence of water on the elastic modulus of paper

In Part I, an extension of the theory of hydrogen-bond-dominated solids was proposed. In Part 2, the predictions of the extended theory are tested statistically using recently reported measurements of elastic moduli for 24 papers over a wide range of moisture contents. Moduli were reported both quasi-statically and ultrasonically. Statistical analysis shows that the effect of moisture in lowering the elastic modulus of paper is greater when the modulus is measured quasi-statically. The rate of decrease in the logarithm of modulus with moisture content when measured sonically is about 75% of the rate of decrease measured quasi-statically. The ratio of the two measured moduli for an isotropically equivalent paper is statistically indistinguishable from a ratio obtained from measurements of the effectiveness of water in reducing these elastic moduli. This supports one of the new predictions of the extended H-bond theory proposed in Part I.

Duke Scholars

Author Stefan Zauscher Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materia ...