Preparation And Properties Of ZrO₂/MWCNTs Hybrid Reinforced Epoxy Resin Matrix Composites

Epoxy resins are widely used in the field of high-performance resin-based composite materials due to their excellent properties.In this paper,epoxy resin E-51 was used as the matrix.By changing the filler type and mass fraction,three epoxy resin composite materials were designed and prepared,which were ZrO2/EP,MWCNTs/EP and ZrO2+MWCNTs/EP,respectively.Epoxy resin casting body was also prepared for comparison.The research content is as follows:By functionalizing the filler,the bonding force between the filler and the epoxy resin matrix,the degree of dispersion in the matrix resin are improved.The zirconia and multi-walled carbon nanotubes were modified,and the modified results were characterized by SEM,XRD,FTIR,and TGA characterization methods.The results showed that the functional groups were grafted on the surfaces of bothAfter the modified filler was mixed with the epoxy resin by the solution mixing method according to different proportions,it was cured by a certain curing process.It tested the mechanical properties of the cured sample in four aspects:compression,bending,impact,and stretching.Analysis shows,with the filler content increasing,the mechanical properties of the epoxy resin-based composite material increased first and then decreased,reaching the maximum at 1.5%-ZrO2 and 0.15%-MWCNTs.This is because the functional groups on the surface of the filler and the matrix resin react chemically during the curing process.Compared with the ungrafted filler,the function of the functional group enhances the interface binding force between the filler and the matrix resin and improves the dispersion of the filler in the resin degreeIn this paper,non-isothermal DSC was used to test EP,ZrO2/EP,MWCNTs/EP,and the DSC exothermic curves were studied.The characteristic temperature of the curve was linearly fitted to obtain the curing characteristic temperature.The KAS and FWO methods were used to get the apparent activation energy of the three systems,and the n-order reaction order.While the reaction order of the autocatalytic model was founded by the nonlinear fitting method.After all,the two model equations were compared with the experimental data to determine the final curing reaction equation.It concluded that existence of the packing does not change the curing mechanism of the epoxy resin.All three have a similar curing process.In this paper,the autocatalytic model equations of the three systems are calculated,which is very similar to the experimental curve.