Synergistic Effect of Hybrid Montmorillonite-reduced Graphene Oxide as Dual Filler for Improving the Mechanical Properties of PVA Composites by a One-step Procedure
Xiao-fang Han, Dong-dong Qi, Ling Zhang, Chun-zhong Li. Synergistic Effect of Hybrid Montmorillonite-reduced Graphene Oxide as Dual Filler for Improving the Mechanical Properties of PVA Composites by a One-step Procedure[J]. Acta Polymerica Sinica, 2014,(2):218-225.
Exfoliated montmorillonite (MMT) and reduced graphene oxide(rGO) hybrids reinforced poly-(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) nanocomposites were prepared via a one-step method. The reduction of graphene oxide (GO) was directly performed in the presence of exfoliated MMT sheets
which effectively prevented the restack of graphene sheets in PVA aqueous solution. The results showed that the interfacial interaction between MMT-rGO hybrids and PVA matrix can be significantly improved by hydrogen bonds. The incorporation of MMT-rGO hybrids into PVA resulted in greatly enhanced tensile properties due to the well dispersion and strong interfacial interaction
which were higher than those of PVA nanocomposites with MMT or rGO individually. The influence of the ratio between MMT and rGO was also investigated. The tensile strength and Young's modulus of the 1 wt% MMT-rGO(2:1)/PVA composites are 85.1 MPa and 1627.8 MPa
respectively
which increased by 46% and 62% compared to those of pure PVA films. The method developed in this study makes an effective way to fabricate hybrid reinforcements for the preparation of high-performance polymer composites.