Nanoindentation and thermal study of polyvinylalcohol/graphene oxide nanocomposite film through organic/inorganic assembly

In this study, hydrogen-bonding interactions between polyvinylalcohol (PVA) and graphene oxide (GO) were utilized as the driving force to fabricate organic/inorganic PVA nanocomposite films with homogeneous dispersion of GO. The nanomechanical and nanotribological performances of pure PVA and PVA/GO films were investigated by using nanoindentation technique. The results demonstrated that the incorporation of 0.5 wt% GO in PVA gives the highest improvement in nanomechanical and nanotribological properties. Compared to pure PVA, the elastic modulus and hardness of 0.5 wt% GO/PVA were notably increased by 122.8% and 64.5%, respectively. Furthermore, the film showed self-lubrication effect and enhanced anti-scratch performance. TGA study reveals an enhanced maximum decomposing temperature of 68.4 °C with the addition of 0.5 wt% GO in PVA. The stability of hydrogen bonding between PVA and GO accompanied with the formed organic/inorganic assembled lamellar micro-structure of PVA/GO films is the main reason for the distinct improvements in nanomechanical, nanotribological and thermal properties of PVA/GO nanocomposite films.