Flexural properties of basalt fiber/epoxy composites with nano-ZrO2 enhanced matrix

In the present research, the effects of adding different percentages of nanozirconia (ZrO2) particles on the flexural properties of epoxy-basalt fiber composites have been investigated. At the first step, the surface of ZrO2 was modified with a silane coupling agent. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) data confirmed the bonding between thesilane compound and nanoparticles. Mechanical properties of the composites were investigated under 3-point flexural loading. The flexural strength and flexural mudulus of the nanocomposite specimens containing 1% and 3% nano- ZrO2 have been taken into account at room temperature and the results were compared with the flexural behavior of epoxy-basalt fiber composite. The results revealed that at filler loading of 1 wt.% nano-ZrO2, the flexural strength and flexural modulus of the epoxy-basalt fiber composite enhanced by 16% and 14.2%, respectively