Monday  |  Executive AB  |  02:00 PM–02:20 PM

#19360, Electrically Aligned Epoxy-Based Nanocomposites: Processing and Characterization

This study examines the electric-field alignment of amine-functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MW-CNTs) and graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) within an epoxy matrix, aiming to enhance their mechanical, electrical, and thermal performance. Amine-functionalized MW-CNTs and GNPs were dispersed within the epoxy resin using high-shear mixing to achieve a homogenous nanocomposite. 0.1 and 0.2 wt% of both nanomaterials are used to prepare the samples. A key feature of the research involved the application of an external AC electric field before curing to align MW-CNTs and GNPs in the desired orientation. The parameters of the applied electric field were carefully optimized in terms of duration of electric field alignment, strength of applied voltage, frequency of AC fields, and temperature of the epoxy-nanomaterial mixture - to achieve maximum alignment. Notably, without alignment, randomly distributed MW-CNTs were found to increase the tensile strength by approximately 35% at 0.2 wt%, while GNPs showed a 30% improvement at 0.1 wt% concentrations. Based on these baseline results, the current study aims for further improvement in mechanical properties through electric-field assembly. In addition to mechanical performance, prior studies have demonstrated an increase in the conductivity of the resulting nanocomposite via the creation of an aligned network of carbon nanomaterials that would cater to high-performance applications for the electronic, aerospace, and automotive industries. This process underscores the importance of nanoparticle alignment and dispersion in maximizing the performance potential of CNT and GNP-based nanocomposites

Julkarnyne Rahman   Auburn University
Suhasini Gururaja   Auburn University