Effect of Nano TiO2/Clay on the Erosive Wear Behavior of Basalt-Epoxy Hybrid Composites at Elevated Temperatures

Materials added to the matrix help improving operating properties of a composite. In the last few years, nanofiller /polymer composite have been widely investigated because of their outstanding multifunctional properties. In order to improve the erosive wear resistance of composite, an attempt was made to use nanoTiO2 and nanoclay as filler for the basalt reinforced epoxy composite (BE). The impact velocity, filler concentration and temperature are the parameters used for the study. The composites were fabricated using vacuum assisted resin infusion technique (VARI) technique. The fabricated composite specimens were tested by using erosive wear test rig as per ASTM G76 under normal incidence. The result shows that the erosion rate increases with increase in temperature and impact velocity. However, nanoTiO2-filled BE composite exhibits lower erosion rate as compared to Nanoclay filled and unfilled composite. The morphology of eroded surfaces was examined by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM).