Effect of elevated in-service temperature on the mechanical properties and microstructure of particulate-filled epoxy polymers
Author(s)
Khotbehsara, Mojdeh Mehrinejad
Manalo, Allan
Aravinthan, Thiru
Reddy, Kakarla Raghava
Ferdous, Wahid
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
In civil engineering applications, epoxy-based polymers are subject to different environmental conditions including in-service temperature, which might accelerate their degradation and limit their application ranges. Recently, different particulate fillers were introduced to enhance the mechanical properties and reduce the cost of epoxy-based polymers. This paper addresses the effect of in-service elevated temperature (from room
temperature to 80o C) in particulate-filled epoxy based resin containing up to 60% by volume of fire retardant and fly ash fillers through a deep understanding of the microstructure and analysis of their mechanistic response. An improvement in the retention of mechanical properties at in-service elevated temperature was achieved by increasing the percentages of
fillers. The retention of compressive and split tensile strength at 80o C for the mix containing 60% fillers was 72% and 52%, respectively, which was significantly higher than the neat epoxy. Thermo-dynamic analysis showed an increase in glass transition temperature with the inclusion of fillers, while these mixes also experienced less weight loss compared to neat epoxy, indicating better thermal stability. Scanning electron microscopy images showed the formation of dense microstructures for particulate-filled epoxy based resin at elevated temperatures. This indicates that the particulate filled epoxy resin exhibits better engineering properties at in-service elevated temperatures, increasing their durability and therefore their suitability for civil engineering applications. A simplified prediction equation based on power function was proposed and showed a strong correlation to the experimental compressive and splitting tensile strength at different levels of in-service elevated temperature.
temperature to 80o C) in particulate-filled epoxy based resin containing up to 60% by volume of fire retardant and fly ash fillers through a deep understanding of the microstructure and analysis of their mechanistic response. An improvement in the retention of mechanical properties at in-service elevated temperature was achieved by increasing the percentages of
fillers. The retention of compressive and split tensile strength at 80o C for the mix containing 60% fillers was 72% and 52%, respectively, which was significantly higher than the neat epoxy. Thermo-dynamic analysis showed an increase in glass transition temperature with the inclusion of fillers, while these mixes also experienced less weight loss compared to neat epoxy, indicating better thermal stability. Scanning electron microscopy images showed the formation of dense microstructures for particulate-filled epoxy based resin at elevated temperatures. This indicates that the particulate filled epoxy resin exhibits better engineering properties at in-service elevated temperatures, increasing their durability and therefore their suitability for civil engineering applications. A simplified prediction equation based on power function was proposed and showed a strong correlation to the experimental compressive and splitting tensile strength at different levels of in-service elevated temperature.
Date Issued
2019-12
Date Acceptance
2019-10-03
Citation
Polymer Degradation and Stability, 2019, 170
ISSN
0141-3910
Publisher
Elsevier
Journal / Book Title
Polymer Degradation and Stability
Volume
170
Copyright Statement
© 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. This manuscript is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Licence http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Subjects
0303 Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry
0904 Chemical Engineering
0912 Materials Engineering
Polymers
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
108994
Date Publish Online
2019-10-04