Effects of additives on the mechanical and thermal properties of epoxy-based nanocomposites produced using sonication

Abstract

Epoxy nanocomposites were synthesized in the presence of hydroxyapatite with the aid of an ultrasonicator. In general, as the amount of hydroxyapatite increased from 0wt% to 10wt%, the mechanical properties of the hydroxyapatite-containing nanocomposite were enhanced. The mechanical properties of the nanocomposite were significantly enhanced by the simple addition of 10 wt% of hydroxyapatite. Specifically, the storage modulus of the 10 wt% hydroxyapatite-containing nanocompsote was 3.2GPa, which is 46% higher compared to that of the pristine epoxy nanocomposite. The glass transition temperature of hydroxyapatite-containing nanocomposites generally decreased by few degrees in Celsius. To investigate the effect of additives on the mechanical properties of the epoxy-based nanocomposite, nanocomposites were synthesized using both montmorillonite and tellurium dioxide instead of hydroxyapatite. Intrestingly, both additive-based nanocomposite materials resulted in an increase in the storage modulus while the glass transition temperature decreased. These results demonstrate that the addition of few wt% of all three additives (hydroxyapatite, montmorillonite, and tellurium dioxide) can enhance the mechanical properties of epoxy-based nanocomposites.