A Study of Mechanical Behavior of Polycarbonate Nanocomposites Using Molded Disk Specimens

This paper presents an experimental study of the mechanical behavior of polycarbonate modified with boron nitride nanotubes, an emerging type of nanotube with extraordinary mechanical performance that is optically transparent. Using molded disk specimens with the same geometry, equibiaxial flexural, supported punch shear, and low-speed impact tests were performed to determine the flexural stiffness, punch shear strength, and impact performance of nanocomposites. Polycarbonate nanocomposite samples with different nanotube content (up to 1 wt%) were investigated. Within the scope of the study, mechanical properties of the nanocomposite samples exhibited only very limited variations depending on the reinforcement content; however, noticeable improvement in flexural stiffness and dissipated energy in punch shear were observed, with the low-speed impact performance remaining essentially unchanged. In addition, the complex failure behavior in punch shear was studied with the aid of scanning electron microscopy and the preliminary results are reported.