Improvement of interfacial property between PBO fibers and epoxy resin by surface grafting of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSS)

Abstract PBO fiber as reinforced material has been widely applied in various fields such as aerospace, automobile and sport apparatus due to excellent mechanic property during past two decades. However, poor interfacial adhesion limits the further application of PBO fiber. To solve this problem, plenty of work has been done. In the present study, the surface of PBO fibers was treated through surface grafting of polyhedral oligomeric silsequioxanes (POSS). The effect of POSS grafting on bulk mechanic property and interfacial property of PBO fiber were studied. Surface chemical composition, surface morphologies, surface free energy, single-fiber tensile strength of untreated and treated PBO fiber were characterized. The results show that POSS nanoparticles were grafted on the fiber surface successfully. The surface characteristics of treated PBO fiber were different from that of untreated one. Oxygen-containing polar functional groups, elemental ratio of oxygen to carbon, surface roughness and surface free energy increased significantly. In addition, interfacial shear strength between treated PBO fibers and epoxy resin increased to 54.9 MPa comparative with untreated one. Meanwhile tensile strength of treated PBO fibers only very little decreased. Therefore, POSS surface grafting can be utilized to enhance the interfacial adhesion between PBO fibers and epoxy resin matrix.