In this work, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Raman spectroscopy were used to assess the dispersion quality of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in an epoxy matrix. Its ultimate tensile strength (UTS), engineering strain, local strain, and the elastic tensile modulus were determined experimentally. The effect of CNT sonication time in an ethanol medium was also evaluated. A statistical analysis using the t-test approach was employed to clarify how the use of CNTs affects the mechanical properties of the matrix. An increase in the UTS by 10 and 7% was observed in the cases of 0.1 wt.% single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), respectively, but the elastic modulus increased significantly when using MWCNTs. A TEM analysis indicated that the dispersion quality was proportional to the content of CNTs. It is concluded that a CNT-reinforced epoxy matrix is highly sensitive to the amount of CNTs, which can explain the conflicting properties reported for such matrices in the literature.

中文翻译：

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使用 Tem 和拉曼光谱测定环氧树脂中 CNT 的拉伸性能和分散特性

在这项工作中，透射电子显微镜 (TEM) 和拉曼光谱用于评估碳纳米管 (CNT) 在环氧树脂基质中的分散质量。其极限拉伸强度 (UTS)、工程应变、局部应变和弹性拉伸模量通过实验确定。还评估了乙醇介质中 CNT 超声处理时间的影响。使用 t 检验方法进行统计分析以阐明 CNT 的使用如何影响基质的机械性能。在 0.1 wt.% 单壁碳纳米管 (SWCNTs) 和多壁碳纳米管 (MWCNTs) 的情况下，分别观察到 UTS 增加了 10% 和 7%，但使用 MWCNTs 时弹性模量显着增加。TEM 分析表明分散质量与碳纳米管的含量成正比。