The strengthening efficacy of filler/interphase network in polymer halloysite nanotubes system after mechanical percolation

A defective interphase section in polymer halloysite nanotubes (HNT) system is considered and the influences of required interfacial shear strength for effective stress conveying via interphase zone (tau(c)) and interfacial shear strength (tau(c)) on the effective interphase depth, effective filler amount and percolation onset are stated. Additionally, a novel model is progressed for the strength of nanocomposites after percolation onset assuming these terms. The calculations of the established model at numerous series of all factors are analyzed and several tentative facts for various examples are compared to model's estimations. The nanocomposite's strength reaches 75 MPa at tau(c) = 10 MPa and HNT volume fraction of 0.03, but tau(c) = 50 MPa cannot toughen the system at various HNT contents. tau = 30 MPa and HNT radius (R) = 60 nm cannot strengthen the nanocomposites, while tau = 100 MPa and R = 20 nm maximize the strength of system to 138 MPa. HNT length of 900 nm cannot reinforce the samples at various ranges of percolation onset, whereas the strength of nanocomposites grows to 200 MPa at HNT length of 3.1 mu m and percolation onset of 0.002. These results are valuable to optimize the main factors yielding the tough nanocomposites. (C) 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V.

Automated summary

The study focuses on the defective interphase section in the polymer halloysite nanotubes (HNT) system and investigates the influences of interfacial shear strength on effective interphase depth, effective filler amount, and percolation onset. A novel model is proposed to assess the strength of nanocomposites post percolation onset, providing valuable insights for optimizing factors to yield tough nanocomposites. The calculations and comparisons with various examples show the potential of strengthening nanocomposites based on different interfacial shear strength and nanotube properties.