Investigate mechanical & thermal properties of epoxy composites

Abstract

In this project, the mechanical properties and thermal properties of polymer composite materials obtained by using ceramic fillers are studied. The polymer matrix is epoxy resin and ceramic fillers are micro magnesia, nano Alumina & nano SiO2. The thermal conductivity of epoxy-based composites has been studied with various filler content. The result shows 15.2% volume fraction of micro MgO will lead to the percolation threshold of filler loading. At this loading, further adding nano Alumina will increase thermal conductivity through plane & in plane & thermal stability, but it will lead to porosity and high hardness. In contrast, the effect of nano SiO2 is not significant. The thermal conductivity is measured by the hot plate method and the hardness of samples is determined by the Vickers hardness test