Effect of graphene oxide surface treatment on the interfacial adhesion and the tensile performance of flax epoxy composites. (March 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Javanshour, F.; Ramakrishnan, KR.; Layek, R.K.; Laurikainen, P.; Prapavesis, A.; Kanerva, M.; Kallio, P.; Van Vuure, A.W.; Sarlin, E.
• Is Part Of: Composites. Volume 142(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-03
• Subjects: A. Natural fibres -- A. Graphene -- B. Fibre/matrix bond -- B. Strength; Composite materials -- Periodicals; Manufacturing processes -- Periodicals; Composite materials; Manufacturing processes; Periodicals; 620.11805
• DOI: 10.1016/j.compositesa.2020.106270
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1359-835X

Abstract

Abstract: The high stiffness and damping properties of flax fibres promote the integration of biocomposites in structural applications. However, the strength of flax/epoxy composites is still limited compared to glass/epoxy composites. Graphene oxide (GO) has proved to be a promising building block for nanocomposites due to its high toughness, stiffness and tunable interfacial interactions with polymers. This study aims to understand the potential of GO-based surface treatment of flax fibres to modify the interfacial adhesion and tensile performance of flax fibre/epoxy composites. GO-modification improves the interfacial shear strength of elementary flax fibre/epoxy by 43%. The interfacial improvement is also established by the 40% higher transverse bending strength compared to untreated flax/epoxy composites. The tensile moduli of GO-modified flax/epoxy composites are on average 2 GPa higher than for untreated flax fibre/epoxy composites in all strain ranges. The quasi-static longitudinal tensile strength of unidirectional composites is not affected by GO-modification.