Chemically activated core-shell structured IF-WS₂@C nanoparticles enhance sugarcane-based carbon/epoxy nanocomposites

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Ternary composites offer superior mechanical property enhancement in modified epoxy resins compared to binary composites.
• Investigating novel nanofillers is crucial for advancing composite material performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and analyze a novel ternary nanocomposite using bisphenol F epoxy resin (BPF)/sugarcane-based carbon powders (SCPs) matrix filled with C-coated inorganic fullerene-like tungsten disulfide (IF-WS₂@C) nanoparticles.
• To evaluate the interface synergetic effect and mechanical performance of the developed ternary nanocomposite.

Main Methods:

• Preparation of the ternary nanocomposite by incorporating IF-WS₂@C nanoparticles into a BPF/SCPs matrix.
• Characterization using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Infrared Spectroscopy (IR), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM).
• Analysis of interface synergetic effects using XPS and FTIR.

Main Results:

• Significant improvements in mechanical properties were observed: a 39.4% increase in bending modulus with 0.5 wt% IF-WS₂@C and a 34.1% enhancement in bending strength with 0.2 wt% IF-WS₂@C.
• Hardness increased by 5.2% and thermal conductivity by 33.1% with 0.5 wt% IF-WS₂@C addition.
• The activated nano-carbon core-shell structure of the filler demonstrated excellent performance.

Conclusions:

• The novel ternary nanocomposite exhibits excellent mechanical and thermal properties due to the IF-WS₂@C nanofiller.
• The chemically activated coating on IF-WS₂@C nanoparticles shows potential for improving graphite crystallization and expanding applications.