Mechanical, thermal, and UV-shielding behavior of silane surface modified ZnO-reinforced phthalonitrile nanocomposites

Abstract

In the present work, zinc oxide nanoparticles were treated with aminopropyl trimethoxy silane-coupling agent and used as a new kind of reinforcement for a typical high performance bisphenol-A-based phthalonitrile resin. The resulted nanocomposites were characterized for their mechanical, thermal, and optical properties. Results from the tensile test indicated that the tensile strength and modulus as well as the toughness state of the matrix were all enhanced with the increasing of the nanoparticles amount. Thermogravimetric analysis showed that the starting decomposition temperatures and the residual weight at 800°C were highly improved upon adding the nanofillers. At 6 wt% nanoloading, the glass transition temperature and the storage modulus were considerably enhanced reaching about 359°C and 3.7 GPa, respectively. The optical tests revealed that the neat resin possesses excellent UV-shielding properties, which were further enhanced by adding the nanofillers. Furthermore, the fractured surfaces of the nanocomposites analyzed by scanning electron microscope exhibited homogeneous and rougher surfaces compared with that of the pristine resin. Finally, the good dispersion of the reinforcing phase into the matrix was confirmed by a high resolution transmission electron microscope.

High-temperature hybrid phthalonitrile/amino-MMT nanocomposites: Synthesis, structure, properties

“…The most effective method of further enhancing properties of BPhN polymers is synthesis of nanocomposites. Only recently, the first publications on phthalonitrile nanocomposites appeared in literature [30][31][32][33][34][35][36]. Lei and coworkers [30,31] synthesized the nanocomposites with 5-10 wt% exfoliated graphite nano platelets and improved flexural strength, modulus and thermal stability.…”

“…Lei and coworkers [30,31] synthesized the nanocomposites with 5-10 wt% exfoliated graphite nano platelets and improved flexural strength, modulus and thermal stability. Derradji and coworkers [32][33][34][35] synthesized the phthalonitrile nanocomposites with silicon nitride [32], ceramics [33] and surface-modified ZnO [34] or titania [35] nanoparticles. The substantial effects of introducing nanoparticles for enchancing thermal and mechanical properties of BPhN-based matrix have been shown.…”

Reduced curing kinetic energy and enhanced thermal resistance of phthalonitrile resins modified with inorganic particles

“…Recently, introducing the inorganic particles into the composites has drawn much more attention . Because they could render the resins' outstanding advantages of cost‐effective processibility, enhanced stiffness, strength, and high mechanical properties.…”

“…Recently, introducing the inorganic particles into the composites has drawn much more attention. 19 Because they could render the resins' outstanding advantages of cost-effective processibility, enhanced stiffness, strength, and high mechanical properties. Different kinds of inorganic particles, such as boron carbide (B 4 C), 20 silicon nitride (Si 3 N 4 ), silicon carbide (SiC), and aluminum oxide (Al 2 O 3 ), 21 have been widely used as filler in different kinds of polymeric matrices.…”

High performance nanocomposites from Ti3SiC2 MAX phase and phthalonitrile resin

“…PN resins are well known for their outstanding thermal resistance with starting decomposition temperatures over 4508C for the typical PN polymers. The good thermal stability of the PN resins is accompanied by a superior flame resistance, absence of a glass transition temperature (T g ) before their thermal decomposition, low water absorption, advanced UV shielding, and excellent corrosion protective properties [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11]. Such a combination of properties promotes the PN resins in aerospace and military applications over the traditional high performance thermosets such as epoxies [12], polybenzoxazines [13], and even the well-known polyimides prepared by the polymerization of monomeric reactants approach [14,15].…”