Polymethyl methacrylate nanofiber-reinforced epoxy composite for shape-memory applications

Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) nanofiber-reinforced diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A shape memory epoxy composites were fabricated and their shape-memory properties were investigated. The PMMA nanofibers were found to be randomly distributed, while the tensile strength and Young's modulus increased with increase in the percentage of PMMA. The glass transition temperature of the composites was found to decrease marginally with the addition of PMMA nanofibers. The shape recovery experiments showed that at low strain percentages, the composites exhibited excellent strain recovery. However, at higher strain percentages, the percentage of recovery was found to decrease gradually with increase in filler concentration.