Osteoarticular-inspiring manipulation of bio-based exfoliated boron nitride for fire-safe, strong yet tough epoxy

Abstract

Aiming to strengthening fire retardancy of epoxy resin without sacrificing the mechanical performance, boron nitride (BN) was synchronously stripped and activated using a bio-based tannic acid (TA)-assisted milling strategy, followed by featuring osteoarticular-inspiring surface engineering of interlocking structure. Experimental and DFT virtual evaluation evidenced the effectiveness of TA-assisted upscaling milling strategy by the vigorous affinity between boron (BN) and oxygen atom (TA). A spatially adjustable piling of lamellar NiCo-LDH on the globally activated BN (fBN) was manipulated using an exclusive metal–organic framework (MOF)-derived etching-conversion mode. 6 wt% targeted fBN@NiCo-LDH imparted epoxy with UL-94 V-1 rating and reduced peak smoke production rate by 30.0 %. A totally catalytic conversion of toxic CO by interface-located NiCo-LDH was observed. An insightful fire-safe mechanism investigation via dynamic and static analysis demonstrated the formation of compact and continuous char structure with a higher polyaromatic degree via the interface-charring catalysis. Additionally, the tensile strength and impact toughness were unconceivably enhanced by 54.2 % and 127.0 % respectively, which was presumably evidenced by in-situ formed osteoarticular-inspiring interlocking structure. In parallel, EP/6fBN@NiCo-LDH presented a 20 °C increased glass transition temperature and marginally enhanced thermal conductivity. Prospectively, the surface engineering via osteoarticular-inspiring interlocking coupled with bio-based exfoliation exploit a novel roadmap for multifunctional nano-reinforcer.