Morphology evolution of self‐same nanocomposites hybridized with jumbo‐sized particles

Abstract

This article reports the production, morphological analyzes, and application of electrospun self‐same nanocomposites with milled carbon fibers (MCFs). The new hybridized structure was also incorporated into conventional fiber reinforced epoxy composites with improved properties. The MCF‐hybridized polymeric nonwoven mats were formed with the simultaneous dual electrospinning of a soften‐able (m‐phase) and a crosslink‐able (x‐phase) variants of poly(styrene‐co‐glycidyl methacrylate). The morphology of the hybrid material was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results showed that electrospinning can successfully deposit reinforcing particles of giant size (MCFs are 7 μm in diameter, 50 μm to 3 mm in length) compared to the diameter of the carrier nanofibers (nanometers). The new hybrid structure preserved the fibrous morphology of the polymer phases up to 250°C. The overall morphology of the hybrid composite was tunable by changing the fractions of the two polymeric phases. The particle‐polymer hybrid structures created morphologies that might find applications in various areas such as the interlayer toughening of laminated composites. It was shown that m‐phase/MCF@x‐phase nonwoven integrated into epoxy matrix composite laminates as interlayer, increased the strain at failure and ultimate strength under tensile loading by 11% and 9%, respectively.