Effect of TiO2@SiO2 nanoparticles on the mechanical and UV-resistance properties of polyphenylene sulfide fibers

In order to avoid the inherent photo-catalysis and aggregation of TiO2 in PPS, TiO2 nanoparticles were coated with SiO2 layers, which were chosen as the UV absorbent to improve the UV stability of polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) fiber. The PPS–TiO2@SiO2 nanocomposites fibers were prepared via melt spinning, and the nanocomposites fibers displayed different crystallization behaviors on variation of the diameters of TiO2@SiO2 nanoparticles, as confirmed by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The spinnability, breaking strength and UV-resistance properties of PPS nanocomposites fibers, as measured by homemade melt spinning machine, Xenon-lamp Weather Resistance Test Chamber and Yarn Tensile Tester, manifested the dependence on the diameters. The addition of nanoparticles with the diameter of 25 nm improved the spinnability and the mechanical performance of PPS most, which is attributed to the heterogeneous nucleation effect of nanoparticles. The UV-resistance properties of the PPS nanocomposites were improved by the addition of TiO2@SiO2 nanoparticles. After aging for 180 h, PPS nanocomposites fiber still maintained a high strength.