Synergetic Effects of Mechanical Properties on Graphene Nanoplatelet and Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Hybrids Reinforced Epoxy/Carbon Fiber Composites

Abstract

Graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are novel nanofillers possessing attractive characteristics, including robust compatibility with most polymers, high absolute strength, and cost effectiveness. In this study, an outstanding synergetic effect on the grapheme nanoplatelets (GNPs) and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) hybrids were used to reinforce epoxy composite and epoxy/carbon fiber composite laminates to enhance their mechanical properties. The mechanical properties of CNTs/GNPs hybrids on a fixed weight fraction (1 wt%) with mixing different ratio reinforced epoxy nanocomposite, such as ultimate tensile strength and flexure properties, were investigated. The mechanical properties of epoxy/carbon fiber composite laminates containing different proportions of CNTs/GNPs hybrids (0.5, 1.0, 1.5 wt%) were increased over that of neat laminates. Consequently, significant improvement in the mechanical properties was attained for these epoxy resin composites and carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy composite laminates.