Research Article - Materials Science and Nanotechnology (2017) Volume 1, Issue 2

The effect of 0.5 wt% additions of carbon nanotubes & ceramic nanoparticles on tensile properties of epoxy-matrix composites: a comparative study.

Carbon nanotube (CNT) and ceramic nanoparticles have different effects on the mechanical properties in epoxy nanocomposites. There are several mechanisms that explain how the differences for mechanical properties in these two different reinforcement are. In this study, multi-walled CNT and three different ceramic nanoparticles (Fe2O3, SiO2 and Al2O3) reinforcements on epoxy were examined. The weight percent of these additions were kept to be 0.5 wt% in all the tests. Tensile tests were carried out in order to characterize the mechanical properties. Statistical analysis was carried out to check the reliability of the test results. Fracture surfaces were examined with scanning electron microscope (SEM). Statistical analyses showed that (i) all additions enhanced tensile strength with the largest increase obtained with SiO2 and Fe2O3 nanoparticles, (ii) elongation was not affected by nanoparticle additions, and (iii) highest reproducibility was obtained in Al2O3 reinforced epoxy.

Author(s): Lokman Gemi, Şakir Yazman, Muhammet Uludağ, Derya Dispinar, Murat Tiryakioğlu

Abstract Full Text PDF