A 2D-Raman correlation spectroscopy study of the interaction of the polymer nanocomposites with carbon nanotubes and human osteoblast-like cells interface

Even though the characteristics of polymer materials are sensitive to temperature, the mechanical properties of polymer nanocomposites have rarely been studied before, especially for the fatigue behavior of hybrid polymer nanocomposites. Hence, the tensile quasi-static and fatigue tests for the epoxy nanocomposites reinforced with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) were performed at different temperatures in the study to investigate the temperature-dependent synergistic effect of hybrid nano-fillers on the studied properties. The temperature and the filler ratio were the main variables considered in the experimental program. A synergistic index was employed to quantify and evaluate the synergistic effect of hybrid fillers on the studied properties. Experimental results show that both the monotonic and fatigue strength decrease with increasing temperature significantly. The nanocomposites with a MWCNT (multi-walled CNT): GNP ratio of 9:1 display higher monotonic modulus/strength and fatigue strength than those with other filler ratios. The tensile strengths of the nanocomposite specimens with a MWCNT:GNP ratio of 9:1 are 10.0, 5.5, 12.9, 23.4, and 58.9% higher than those of neat epoxy at −28, 2, 22, 52, and 82 °C, respectively. The endurance limits of the nanocomposites with this specific filler ratio are increased by 7.7, 26.7, 5.6, 30.6, and 42.4% from those of pristine epoxy under the identical temperature conditions, respectively. Furthermore, the synergistic effect for this optimal nanocomposite increases with temperature. The CNTs bridge the adjacent GNPs to constitute the 3-D network of nano-filler and prevent the agglomeration of GNPs, further improve the studied strength. Observing the fracture surfaces reveals that crack deflect effect and the bridging effect of nano-fillers are the main reinforcement mechanisms to improve the studied properties. The pullout of nano-fillers from polymer matrix at high temperatures reduces the monotonic and fatigue strengths. However, high temperature is beneficial to the synergistic effect of hybrid fillers because the nano-fillers dispersed in the softened matrix are easy to align toward the directions favorable to load transfer.

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COMPUTATIONAL DESCRIPTION OF THE GEOMETRY OF ALIGNED CARBON NANOTUBES IN POLYMER NANOCOMPOSITES

10.12783/asc36/35861 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

STEPAN V. LOMOV ◽

JEONYOON LEEJEONYOON LEE ◽

BRIAN L. WARDLE ◽

NIKITA A. GUDKOV ◽

ISKANDER S. AKHATOV ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbon Nanotubes ◽

Polymer Nanocomposites ◽

Finite Element Modelling ◽

Volume Fraction ◽

Voronoi Tessellation ◽

Geometrical Model ◽

Limiting Factor ◽

Full Paper ◽

Aligned Carbon Nanotubes ◽

Curvature And Torsion

The paper considers nanocomposites, reinforced with aligned carbon nanotubes (A- CNTs). Nominally aligned, the CNTs in the forest are wavy, which has important consequences in downgraded mechanical properties, and influences electric and thermal performance. The most detailed geometrical model of A-CNTs was proposed by Stein and Wardle (Nanotechnology, 27:035701, 2015). It creates a centerline trajectory of a CNT in steps, each step defining a section of the CNT, growing in the alignment direction with certain deviations. The paper, starting from this framework, formulates a model of the CNT geometry, which is based on the concept of correlation length of the CNT waviness and maximum admissible CNT curvature and torsion. The value of the maximum curvature can be linked to the buckling criteria for CNTs, or derived from ab initio and finite element modelling. It is used as a limiting factor for the growth, defining the waviness and tortuosity of the CNTs. The CNTs in the forest are placed in a random non-regular way, using Voronoi tessellation. The full paper includes investigation of the proposed algorithm for several values of the CNT volume fraction (in the range 0.5%…8%), the dependency of the modelled geometry on the curvature, and the apparent twist of the CNT centerlines. The modelling results are compared with experimental observations in 3D TEM imaging.

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