Physical, Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Epoxy Coatings Modified with Nitrile-Butadiene Nano-rubber

The main purpose of this work is to study the physical, mechanical and thermal properties of epoxy based resin modified with acrylonitrile-butadiene-rubber (NBR) nanoparticles. At first, elastomer nanoparticle (ENP) at different content was added to epoxy resin. Then, the morphology of nanocomposite and dispersion condition of elastomer nanoparticles was studied using microscopy techniques including SEM, TEM and AFM.The results showed an acceptable dispersion condition for ENPs in epoxy resin. The tensile and impact strength of nanocomposites as two key parameters were thoroughly investigated. The results depicted two times increase in the amount of toughness besides three times increase in the amount of elongation at break in nanocomposite containing 1.5wt% of ENP. Thereafter, the specific coating experimnets including adhesion, hardness, impact, bending and water absorption were performed. The adhesion increased and water uptake was reduced while the toughness was enhanced. The best results were obtained in samples containing 1 wt% elastomeric nanoparticles.