Enhancement in Mechanical and Shape Memory Properties for Liquid Crystalline Polyurethane Strengthened by Graphene Oxide

Conventional shape memory polymers suffer the drawbacks of low thermal stability, low strength, and low shape recovery speed. In this study, main-chain liquid crystalline polyurethane (LCPU) that contains polar groups was synthesized. Graphene oxide (GO)/LCPU composite was fabricated using the solution casting method. The tensile strength of GO/LCPU was 1.78 times that of neat LCPU. In addition, shape recovery speed was extensively improved. The average recovery rate of sample with 20 wt % GO loading was 9.2°/s, much faster than that of LCPU of 2.6°/s. The enhancement in mechanical property and shape memory behavior could be attributed to the structure of LCPU and GO, which enhanced the interfacial interactions between GO and LCPU