Effect of aspect ratio of graphene oxide on properties of poly (vinyl alcohol) nanocomposites

Abstract

In this study, the effect of aspect ratio of graphene oxide (GO) on the properties of poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) nanocomposites were investigated. The PVA/GO nanocomposites were prepared by a simple solution casting method. GO with 3 different lateral sizes, 0.5, 1.5 and 3 µm were used. The higher the aspect ratio, the higher the Young’s modulus obtained. The effect of aspect ratio on Young’s modulus was in agreement with the Halpin-Tsai model, especially when GO was highly aligned in uniaxially drawn nanocomposites. Similar to the Young’s modulus, the barrier properties increased with increasing GO aspect ratio. On the other hand, the highest glass transition temperature as well as the highest thermal decomposition temperature was achieved for the GO of the lowest aspect ratio.