Mechanical property characterization of carbon nanofiber/epoxy nanocomposites reinforced by GMA-grafted UHMWPE fibers

Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) dispersed epoxy resin was reinforced with unidirectional glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) grafted ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers. Tensile tests were performed on unfilled, and CNF filled epoxy to identify the effect of adding CNFs on the mechanical properties of epoxy. The highest improvement in strength was obtained with 1 wt% of CNF. Tensile and flexural properties improvements in three-component nanocomposites were confirmed by obtained results. The combined use of CNFs and GMA-grafted UHMWPE fibers leads to a significant synergy in the mechanical properties of nanocomposites. The mechanisms of such synergism were analyzed by fracture studies using scanning electron microscopy.