Optimization of the abrasive wear and tear characteristics of nanoparticle and rubber-particle modified epoxy resin for resin injection applications

An effective manufacturing of composite structures by resin transfer molding (RTM) requires a resin system with excellent flow properties. A research project dealt with the improvement of the stiffness/toughness profile of an epoxy resin by optimized combination of hard nanoparticles and appropriate rubber particles under consideration of the processing requirements. As a technical application in the papermaking industry (doctor blades) is loaded by abrasive sliding investigations of the specific wear rate in a pin-ring setup were tarried out with an abrasive counterpart Incorporated hard nanoparticles lead to improved wear performance in analogy to the modulus and toughness increase by these particles. Rubber particles caused increased fracture toughness but lead to decreased wear behaviour of the modified epoxy resin in terms of a higher specific wear rate. Optimized wear behavior and significantly improved fracture toughness could be achieved by systematic variation of the particle contents.