Interfacial microstructure and properties between epoxy resin and novel organic hybrid graphene oxide modification ultra high molecular weight polyethylene fiber

An efficient chemical grafting method was developed to enhance interfacial properties of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fiber reinforced composites. Novel organic hybrid graphene oxide (NOHGO) was successfully prepared via grafting polyetheramine (PEA) on graphene oxide (GO) surface with (3-glycidyloxypropyl) trimethoxysilan (GLYMO) as coupling agent. Even if in the extremely dilute suspension, ideal interfacial modification effect was still easily achieved via efficiently grafting NOHGOs on the surface of UHMWPE fiber. The results revealed NOHGOs were of amino groups and almost unfolding structure. NOHGOs were adhered closely on the surface of UHMWPE fiber, which seems to form a uniform tree-rings-like interfacial structure. This type of interfacial structure benefits to reduce defects of the modified fiber surface, to enhance chemical bonding at weak region (between NOHGO and fiber) in interface, and to make the propagation paths of cracks complication, as to the extremely improvement of interfacial properties. Compared with conventional organic hybrid graphene oxide (OHGO), as many as 14.9% enhancement of the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) and higher energy absorption at the interface region were found via microbond test