Abstract
Several epoxy Al(OH)O (boehmite) dispersions in an epoxy resin are produced in a kneader to study the mechanistic correlation between the nanoparticle size and mechanical properties of the prepared nanocomposites. The agglomerate size is set by a targeted variation in solid content and temperature during dispersion, resulting in a different level of stress intensity and thus a different final agglomerate size during the process. The suspension viscosity was used for the estimation of stress energy in laminar shear flow. Agglomerate size measurements are executed via dynamic light scattering to ensure the quality of the produced dispersions. Furthermore, various nanocomposite samples are prepared for three-point bending, tension, and fracture toughness tests. The screening of the size effect is executed with at least seven samples per agglomerate size and test method. The variation of solid content is found to be a reliable method to adjust the agglomerate size between 138–354 nm during dispersion. The size effect on the Young’s modulus and the critical stress intensity is only marginal. Nevertheless, there is a statistically relevant trend showing a linear increase with a decrease in agglomerate size. In contrast, the size effect is more dominant to the sample’s strain and stress at failure. Unlike microscaled agglomerates or particles, which lead to embrittlement of the composite material, nanoscaled agglomerates or particles cause the composite elongation to be nearly of the same level as the base material. The observed effect is valid for agglomerate sizes between 138–354 nm and a particle mass fraction of 10 wt%.
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Acknowledgements
This study developed in the framework of the research unit FOR2021 “Acting Principles of Nano-Scaled Matrix Additives for Composite Structures”. The authors are exceedingly grateful to the German Research Foundation (DFG) for the financial support, to Dr. Patrick Bussian (Sasol Germany GmbH) for providing the particulate material, to Peter Pfeiffer (TU Braunschweig) for the SEM pictures, and to Carmen Westphal and Marcus Kubicka for their technical support concerning the mechanical testing.
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This study was funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG).
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Jux, M., Finke, B., Mahrholz, T. et al. Effects of Al(OH)O nanoparticle agglomerate size in epoxy resin on tension, bending, and fracture properties. J Nanopart Res 19, 139 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-017-3831-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-017-3831-9