Mechanical and Electromagnetic Interference Shielding Properties of Carbon Fiber/Graphene Nanosheets/Epoxy Composite

Graphene oxide (GO) was introduced into carbon fiber/epoxy composite using a wet process for impregnating carbon fiber by epoxy added with GO, which resulted in an enhancement in the interfacial performance and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness (SE) of composite. To investigate the reinforcing mechanism, we compared the reinforcing effect between graphene oxide and reduced graphene oxide through interlaminar shear strength test, microdrop test, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The results indicate that toughening effect plays the key role for the interfacial improvement of carbon fiber/graphene nanosheets/epoxy composite. By adding only 0.1 wt% GO, the composite achieved an 11% enhancement of interlaminar shear strength at the maximum of 117.45 MPa and a SE improvement about 10 dB in the range of 5-20 GHz in the meantime, giving rise to a highly practicable potential for industrial utilization. (C) 2015 Society of Plastics Engineers