Understanding the effect of nano-Al2O3 addition upon the properties of epoxy-based hybrid composites

With the recent advances in nanoscience, there is promoting interest in nano-sized reinforced polymers for high technology applications. Evaluations on the curing reaction of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) cured with 4,4'-diaminodiphenylmethane (DDM) in the presence of nano-alumina have been carried out using DSC and In situ FT-IR measurements. The results from calorimetry measurements showed that the loading level of 2 is the optimum alumina concentrations for DDM-based composite. Different kinetic models including nth order, the Kamal autocatalytic, and the modified Avrami equations have been tested and the results of kinetic analysis are presented just for the last model owing to the better fitting of the experimental data. The viscoelastic behavior of the cured composites is determined using DMA showing that the storage modulus and the T-g of the composites are improved with the addition of nano-filler concentration. Results from SEM analyses revealed that the filler encourages the development of large particles in the resin matrix. Mechanical property measurement of the composites indicated that high flexural modulus has been attained with increasing concentration of nano-Al2O3. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.