Synthesis and properties of silanized waterborne polyurethane/graphene nanocomposites

A series of silanized waterborne polyurethane (WPU)/graphene oxide (GO) chemical hybrids were synthesized from polycaprolactone diol, isophorone diisocyanate, dimethylol butanoic acid, and (3-aminopropyl) triethoxysilane with GO as multifunctional crosslink as well as reinforcing filler. With the addition of GO, dispersion size greatly decreased due to the increased water phase viscosity, while it increased after chain extension reaction due to the migration of GO into the PU particles. The GO covalently bonded to WPU via the sol–gel type reaction augmented contact angle, glass transition temperature (Tg), hardness, and Young’s modulus of the cast film up to 1 %. However, the effects were less pronounced at high content (1.5 %) due to the agglomeration of GO particles.