Effect of Interphase on Elastic Properties of Nanofiller Based Composites

Abstract

The superior properties of nano-materials make them suitable as filler materials to get the composite materials, which are having excellent mechanical properties. In the present work the mechanical properties of nanocomposites having filler materials as nanotube / nanosheet have been analyzed. The mechanical properties like; elastic modulus and shear modulus have been estimated to predict the mechanical behavior of the nanocomposites. The different matrix materials with presence of interphase between nano_ller and matrix materials have been considered. The mechanical characterization of nanocomposites has been carried out analytically by using continuum solid modeling approach (Rule of Mixture, ROM) and Tsai-Pagano approach. Also, the _nite element method (FEM) based simulation approach has been considered to analyze the mechanical properties of nanocomposites with interphase. The carbon nanotube (CNT) of outer radius 0.35 nm, 0.69 nm, 1.39 nm and 3.46 nm and thickness of CNT 0.34 nm are considered. The long CNT based nanocomposites are considered or analysis. Similarly, single layer graphene sheet is also consider with di_erent widths of GS at percentage of the square representative volume element (RVE) of size 13.8791 nm is considered for analysis. The obtained results depict that the consideration of presence of interphase between nanofiller and matrix material increases the overall elastic modulus of nanocomposites. As the radius of CNT increases the elastic modulus of nanocomposite of same RVE increases. For single layer graphene as a nano_ller material, similar results are obtained that elastic modulus increases, when presence of interphase is considered.