高强度复合纤维——利用连续网络结构与分子尺度耦合发挥碳纳米管的真正潜力

作为无缺陷的纳米尺度的结构单元,碳纳米管有着前所未有的力学性能。但是由于碳纳米管与聚合物基质之间结合较弱,其在复合材料中的潜能尚未得到完全发挥。本研究通过将由碳纳米管组成的三维网络结构与聚合物链段在分子尺度进行耦合,使碳纳米管的真正潜力在宏观尺度的复合材料中得以发挥。有着这种结构的复合纤维的力学强度相比于离散碳纳米管增强复合材料有了数量级的提高。不仅如此,纳米管与聚合物链分子尺度的耦合可以导致热固性和热塑性基体复合纤维的力学性质明显不同,表明传统的宏观复合理论不能解释这种纳米尺度的耦合行为。

High-strength Composite Fibers-realizing True Potential of Carbon Nanotubes in Polymer Matrix through Continuous Reticulate Architecture and Molecular Level Couplings

Carbon nanotubes have unprecedented mechanical properties as defect-free nanoscale building blocks,but their potential has not been fully realized in composite materials due to weakness at the interfaces.Here we demonstrate that through load-transfer-favored three-dimensional architecture and molecular level couplings with polymer chains,true potential of CNTs can be realized in composites as initially envisioned.Composite fibers with reticulate nanotube architectures show order of magnitude improvement in strength compared to randomly dispersed short CNT reinforced composites reported before.The molecular level couplings between nanotubes and polymer chains results in drastic differences in the properties of thermoset and thermoplastic composite fibers,which indicate that conventional macroscopic composite theory fails to explain the overall hybrid behavior at nanoscale.