Amino-functionalized carbon fiber/polyamide 6 composites with enhanced interfacial and mechanical properties

Polyamines with different amino numbers were introduced on the surface of carbon fiber (CF) by a chemical grafting method to improve the interfacial properties of CF/polyamide 6 (PA6) composites. First, a carboxyl group was introduced on the surface of CF, and then polyamine was grafted onto the pretreated CF. The chemical structure of CF was confirmed by atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), polarized light microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and the performance test results of the composites were systematically analyzed. The content of N on the surface of the modified CF reached 18.92%; the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) and tensile strength of the modified CF/PA6 composite reached 58.6 MPa, respectively, which were 41.5% and 45.5% higher than those of unmodified CF/PA6 composites. The above results confirm that amino-functionalized grafting modification is an effective method to improve the inter-facial compatibility and adhesion of composites to improve the mechanical properties of composites. (c) 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).