Abstract
This paper investigates the effect of graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) on tensile and fracture toughness properties of an epoxy polymer. The GNP filled epoxy nanocomposites were prepared using a combination technique of solution compounding and high-shear milling with three different GNP loadings; 0.1 wt%, 0.2 wt% and 0.3 wt%. The polymer nanocomposites were characterized based on their fracture toughness and tensile properties. In order to evaluate these properties, three points bending and uniaxial tension tests were conducted on single-edge-notch bending (SENB) and dog-bone shape specimens, respectively. It was found that a significant improvement in fracture toughness and tensile properties was obtained without reducing the failure strain values when GNP was added into the epoxy polymer. The addition of 0.3 wt% GNP improved the critical stress intensity factor, critical strain energy release rate and tensile modulus of the epoxy polymer about 64%, 268 J m−2 and 32%, respectively. This can be concluded that the incorporation of GNP increased the fracture toughness as well as the mechanical properties provided a proper fabrication method was implemented. It is also demonstrated that GNP is capable to provide effective toughening mechanisms in epoxy resin as indicated by the SEM micrographs.
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