Preparation, mechanical and thermal characteristics of d-Ti3C2/PVA film

Abstract In this study, Ti3C2 was delaminated into 2D single or few monolayers-thick nanomaterials (d-Ti3C2) by DMSO intercalation and sonication method. Then, d-Ti3C2/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) films were prepared by solution casting process. The structures, thermal stabilities, thermal behaviors, and surface properties of the resulting materials were characterized by X-ray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Furthermore, the experimental results showed improvements in mechanical and thermal characteristics of d-Ti3C2/PVA films, as compared to those of pure PVA. The addition of d-Ti3C2 had beneficial effects on the tensile strength, elongation at break, modulus of elasticity, thermal stability, and crystallinity of PVA matrix. With 0.5 wt% of d-Ti3C2, d-Ti3C2/PVA composite exhibited the best comprehensive properties.