Preparation and Mechanical Properties of UV-Curable Epoxy Acrylate/Modified Aramid Nanofiber Nanocomposite Films

Abstract

In order to enhance the mechanical properties of UV-curable epoxy acrylate (EA)-based coatings, 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate modified aramid nanofibers (T-ANFs) were synthesized and used as nanofillers to prepare EA/T-ANF nanocomposite films. The morphology of T-ANFs was characterized by transmission electron microscopy. The chemical structure of T-ANFs was analyzed via infrared spectroscopy, confirming successful grafting of methyl methacryloyloxy groups onto the surface of aramid nanofibers (ANFs). Real-time infrared spectroscopy was employed to investigate the influence of ANFs and T-ANFs on the photopolymerization kinetics of the EA film. The results revealed that the addition of ANFs and T-ANFs led to a decrease in the photopolymerization rate during the initial stage but had little impact on the final double bond conversion, with all samples exhibiting a conversion rate of over 83%. The incorporation of ANFs improved the tensile strength of the films while significantly reducing their Young’s modulus. In contrast, the addition of T-ANFs led to a substantial increase in both tensile stress and Young’s modulus of the films. For instance, the tensile strength and Young’s modulus of the 0.1 wt% of T-ANF film increased by 52.7% and 41.6%, respectively, compared to the pure EA film. To further study the dispersion morphology and reinforcement mechanism, the cross-sectional morphology of the films was characterized by scanning electron microscopy.