The effect of silica(SiO2)nanoparticles and ammonia/ethylene plasma treatment on the interfacial and mechanical properties of carbon-fiber-reinforced epoxy composites

摘要

A nanoparticle dispersion is known to enhance the mechanical properties of a variety of polymers and resins.In this work,the effects of silica(SiO2)nanoparticle loading(0-2 wt%)and ammonia/ethylene plasma-treated fibers on the interfacial and mechanical properties of carbon fiber-epoxy composites were characterized.Single fiber composite(SFC)tests were performed to determine the fiber/resin interfacial shear strength(IFSS).Tensile tests on pure epoxy resin specimens were also performed to quantify mechanical property changes with silica content.The results indicated that up to 2% SiO2 nanoparticle loading had only a little effect on the mechanical properties.For untreated fibers,the IFSS was comparable for all epoxy resins.With ethylene/ammonia plasma treated fibers,specimens exhibited a substantial increase in IFSS by 2 to 3 times,independent of SiO2 loading.The highest IFSS value obtained was 146 MPa for plasma-treated fibers.Interaction between the fiber sizing and plasma treatment may be a critical factor in this IFSS increase.The results suggest that the fiber/epoxy interface is not affected by the incorporation of up to 2% SiO2 nanoparticles.Furthermore,the fiber surface modification through plasma treatment is an effective method to improve and control adhesion between fiber and resin.