Nanoparticle reinforced epoxy gelcoats for fiber-plastic composites under multiple load

• Wear resistant coatings for high loaded fiber-plastic composites.
• Load-adapted to fiber-plastic composites and suitable for economical manufacturing.
• Significant advantages over metallic or ceramic surface protection layers.
• Holistic investigation of epoxy gelcoats with varying metal oxide nanoparticles.
• Mechanical, tribological, hygroscopic and rheological properties of the nanogelcoat.

Novel surface coatings that are load-adapted and suitable for economical manufacturing are required for fiber-plastic composites subjected to complex loads. They must have good wear and chemical resistance compared to conventional thermoset coatings (paints, gelcoats), and high failure strain and adhesive strength compared to metallic or ceramic protection layers. Polymeric nanocomposites offer particular advantages in this respect. Given this background, the main aim of this work is to characterize and evaluate surface-protection layers made of metal oxide nanoparticle reinforced epoxy gelcoats for mechanical, tribological and media loaded fiber-reinforced plastics (FRP). The focus is set on the property characterization of the heterogeneous gelcoat as a function of particle material and filler content, as well as the adjustment of the required rheological properties of the liquid particle-resin dispersion so that nanoparticle reinforced gelcoats can be applied to the anisotropic FRP substrate by spray processing in an economical and variable-geometry manner.