Thermal characterization of organically modified montmorillonite and short carbon fibers reinforced glycol‐modified polyethylene terephthalate nanocomposite filaments

AbstractThe focus on the combined effects of fibers and nanoparticles in the realization of novel, high‐performance polymer composites has been increasing progressively. In addition to this, the intervention of additive manufacturing in this pursuit has further enhanced this interest among researchers to experimentally quantify the properties of these composites for various applications. Therefore, this study focuses on experimentally evaluating the thermal behavior of extruded glycol‐modified poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PETG) comonomers reinforced with short carbon fibers (SCFs) and organically modified montmorillonite (OMMT) nanoclay that are apt for 3D printing. Different weight compositions of the aforementioned materials are prepared, compounded, and extruded using a twin‐screw extruder into 16 variants of 3D printable filaments. These filaments are subjected to thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and Fourier transform‐infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy as per their respective American society for testing and materials (ASTM) standards. The results show improvements in the thermal behavior of the composites for various concentrations of OMMT and SCFs. The FTIR analyses complement the capability of OMMT particles and SCFs for microvibrational damping and infrared absorption. The study also demonstrates the influence of chemical interactions between the SCFs, OMMT, and PETG on the overall performance of the composites. It is believed that this study paves way for the induction of such composites in relevant applications including secondary aerospace structures, automobile interiors, and other engineering structural needs.