Experimental study of impact resistance in multi-walled carbon nanotube reinforced epoxy

In this paper nanostructured composite materials reinforced with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are investigated in terms of their capability of absorbing energy during ballistic impact. In order to study tailored nanostructured composites, a chemical functionalization of MWCNTs was tuned to improve the bonding at the polymer–filler interface. Scanning electron microscopy as well as Raman and FT-IR spectroscopies were used to analyze the morphology and the chemical modifications induced on the MWCNT walls. Charpy tests were conducted at different weight percentages of functionalized MWCNT within epoxy resin. Results of the Charpy test showed that the presence of MWCNTs increases the toughness of the polymer up to an inclusion threshold of 0.5 wt.%. High energy impact tests with projectile velocity ranging from 490 to 950 m/s were performed on both nano-reinforced epoxy-Kevlar 29 panels and epoxy-Kevlar 29 ones. The nano-reinforced panels showed improved ballistic behavior in comparison with the reference ones.