The use of different alumina fillers for improvement of the mechanical properties of hybrid PMMA composites

Abstract

Alumina fillers having different morphologies were used for reinforcement of PMMA-based composite materials. The employed fillers had the same chemical composition but morphologically were spherical nanoparticles, whiskers and an electrospun product that was composed of micro-sized mostly spherical particles and nanofibers. The electrospun product was obtained from aluminum chloride hydroxide/PVA/water solution. All fillers were added without surface treatment and mechanical characteristics of obtained composites were determined using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and nanoindentation. From the nanoindentation results, the reduced elastic modulus for the obtained specimens using 3 wt.% of electrospun product was 134% of the one obtained with the polymer alone and the hardness was improved to 157.8% compared to the polymer without any additive. DMA shows that the storage modulus at room temperature was twice that of the polymer alone.