Peeling Experiments of Double Side Adhesive Tapes Suggests the Feasibility of Graphene Nanocomposites with Gigantic Toughness

Using a MTS micro-tensile testing machine equipped with a video camera, we studied the peeling dynamics of double sided adhesive tapes under imposed displacement. A standard T -peel test was considered for the tape system in order to assess its toughness and strength. The strength necessary to separate the folds and the total energy required to detach them were thus measured. The effects of the fold length and width both on the strength and energy adsorption were also evaluated, suggesting new strategies for the design of super-tough bio-inspired materials, mainly the need of a nanoscopic thickness thus suggesting graphene as the ideal candidate to produce super-tough nanomaterials.