Processing and Characterisation of Hybrid Aramid Fabrics Reinforced with Cross-linked Electrospun PVB Composite Nanofibres

Abstract

The aim of this study was to fabricate a new kind of hybrid fabric composites with the cross-linked electrospun poly(vinyl butyral) (PVB) composite nanofibres. The experiments were performed with the 10 wt.% PVB/ethanol solution for electrospinning where the modified silica nanoparticles (mSiO(2)), the oxidised single-walled carbon nanotubes (o-SWCNT) and the o-SWCNT/mSiO(2) hybrid nanoparticles were added to the solution. The electrospun fibres were crosslinked with glutaraldehyde (GA) afterwards in order to reinforce the composite structure by bonding to the p-aramid fabrics. The chemical and thermo-mechanical properties of the hybrid fabric composites were evaluated. The greatest improvement in thermo-mechanical properties was achieved by the sample which contained the cross-linked PVB fibres with the o-SWCNT/mSiO(2) hybrid nanoparticles.