Synergetic enhancement of mechanical and electrical strength in epoxy/silica nanocomposites via chemically-bonded interface

While the incorporation of the inorganic fillers into polymers is envisioned to improve the properties of polymers, the organic–inorganic interface in the nanocomposite plays a prominent role in the modulation of the electrical, mechanical and thermal properties. Here, the epoxy chain-grafted silica nanoparticles were prepared and utilized as the fillers in epoxy matrix. The multiple physical properties such as the tensile strength, the elongation at break, the glass transition temperature, the dielectric strength of the nanocomposites with epoxy chain-grafted silica are simultaneously improved in comparison with those of the neat epoxy and the nanocomposites with unmodified silica. Moreover, substantial reductions in the water absorption ratio, dielectric loss and electric conductivity are obtained in the nanocomposites filled with epoxy-grafted silica even at relatively low filler loadings. These results verify the critical role of the chemically-bonded interface between organic and inorganic phases in determining the mechanical and dielectric strength of the polymer nanocomposites. The interaction zone models for the interface between nanoparticle and polymer matrix have been proposed to rationalize the experimental results.