Experimental investigation of the mechanical properties of graphene oxide-silica nanoparticles reinforced rigid polyurethane foam

ABSTRACT

This study aims to investigate the influence of rigid polyurethane foam (RPUF) as a filling material on the energy absorption performance of thin-walled tubes through experiments. Hybrid graphene oxide-silica nanoparticles (GO-SiO₂) was prepared using the electrostatic adsorption method and its potential application in RPUF enhancement were investigated. The interaction between GO and nano SiO₂ inhibits the agglomeration of each other and improved the mechanical properties and energy absorption capacity of RPUF. When the GO-SiO₂ hybrid content was 6 wt%, the compressive strength and total energy absorption of the GO-SiO₂/RPUF composite material increased by 99.59% and 89.63% compared with those of pure RPUF, respectively. In addition, the deformation characteristics of empty tube and foam-filled tube under lateral compression were compared, and the influence of the RPUF material’s mechanical properties on the energy absorption characteristics of foam-filled tube was further analyzed. Test results show that the foam material can effectively improve the stability of the compression deformation of thin-walled circular tubes and improve the compression resistance of the structure. Improving the mechanical properties of RPUF materials can further increase the bearing capacity and energy absorption of foam-filled tubes. The results in this study validated the feasibility of using GO-SiO₂ hybrid as a new nano-reinforcing filler for RPUF, and provide an experimental reference for the engineering application of foam-filled tubes as energy absorption components.

KEYWORDS:

• Rigid polyurethane foam
• energy absorption
• graphene oxide
• silica nanoparticles
• mechanical properties
• foam-filled tube

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

The data used to support the findings of this study are included in the article.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds in Heilongjiang Provincial Universities (Grant No. 145109125), and Qiqihar University students innovation and entrepreneurship training program (Grant No. x202210232170).