6533b824fe1ef96bd127fef1

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Water transport in epoxy/MWCNT composites

Samuel T. BuschhornAndrey AniskevichE. MannovKarl SchulteOlesja Starkova

subject

NanocompositeWater transportMaterials sciencePolymers and PlasticsMoistureDiffusionOrganic ChemistryGeneral Physics and AstronomyDynamic mechanical analysisEpoxyvisual_artMaterials Chemistryvisual_art.visual_art_mediumThermomechanical analysisRelative humidityComposite material

description

Moisture and water uptake of epoxy/multi-wall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) composites was studied in a wide range of atmosphere relative humidity and temperatures. Addition of up to 1 wt.% of MWCNTs into the neat epoxy resulted to the twofold decrease of the diffusivity, while the levels of moisture/water uptake remained unchanged. The positive effect on the reduction of the diffusion coefficient diminishes with the increase of temperature. Differences in the water transport properties and plasticization ability of the neat polymer and its nanocomposites are explained by the free volume considerations and the polymer–water interactions, which are verified by the results of thermomechanical analysis. Water uptake by the nanocomposites resulted to a lower decrease of the storage modulus than that of the neat epoxy.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2013.05.010