Effect of the Addition of Thermoplastic Resin and Composite on Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Epoxy Resin

When the thermoplastic composites reach the service limits during the service, the recovery and utilization are the key concerns. Meanwhile, the improvement of strength, toughness and durability of epoxy resin is the effective method to prolong the service life of materials and structures. In the present paper, three kinds of thermoplastic resins (polypropylene-PP, polyamide 6-PA6 and polyether-ether-ketone-PEEK) and composites (carbon fiber-PEEK, glass fiber-PA6 and glass fiber-PP) were adopted as the fillers to reinforce and toughen the epoxy resin (Ts). The mechanical, thermal and microscopic analysis were conducted to reveal the performance improvement mechanism of Ts. It can be found that adding thermoplastic resin and composite fillers at the low mass ratio of 0.51.0% brought about the maximum improvement of tensile strength (7 similar to 15%), flexural strength (7 similar to 15%) and shear strength (20 similar to 30%) of Ts resin. The improvement mechanism was because the addition of thermoplastic fillers can prolong the cracking path and delay the failure process through the load bearing of fiber, energy absorption of thermoplastic resin and superior interface bonding. In addition, the thermoplastic composite had better enhancement effect on the mechanical/thermal properties of Ts resin compared to thermoplastic resin. When the mass ratio was increased to 2.0 similar to 3.0%, the agglomeration and stress concentration of thermoplastic filler in Ts resin appeared, leading to the decrease of mechanical and thermal properties. The optimal addition ratios of thermoplastic resin were 0.5 similar to 1.0% (PEEK), 1.0 similar to 2.0% (PA6) and 0.5 similar to 1.0% (PP) to obtain the desirable property improvement. In contrast, the optimal mass ratios of three kinds of composite were determined to be 0.5 similar to 1.0%. Application prospect analysis indicated adding the thermoplastic resin and composite fillers to Ts resin can promote the recycling and reutilization of thermoplastic composites and improve the performance of Ts resin, which can be used as the resin matrix, interface adhesive and anti-corrosion coating.

Automated summary

This study investigates the reinforcement and toughening of epoxy resin through the addition of thermoplastic resin and composite fillers. The results demonstrate that the mechanical and thermal properties of the epoxy resin can be significantly improved by adding thermoplastic fillers at the appropriate mass ratio. The research findings have important implications for the recycling and reutilization of thermoplastic composites and the enhancement of epoxy resin performance.