A Modeling Approach for Young’s Modulus of Interphase Layers inPolymer Nanocomposites

Abstract In this work, the interphase in polymer nanocomposites is modeled as a multilayered part in which the Young’s modulus of each layer Ek continuously changes from nanoparticle surface (xk = 0) to polymer matrix (xk = t). The dependency of Ek onxk is analyzed by linear, exponential and power functions. The average interphase modulus is determined by the Ji model for several samples and the accurate dependency ofEk on x is derived. The linear and exponential relations display a relatively similar trend forEk, but they cannot suggest an accurateEk assuming the predicted interphase modulus by the Ji model. The equation which relatesEk onxkY can present acceptable values for Ek, where the value ofY determines the Young’s modulusEk. This approach can be applied to evaluate the magnitude of interphase in polymer nanocomposites.