Structure of Graphene Oxide in a Polymer Matrix and Its Effect on the Degree of Reinforcement of a Nanocomposite

Abstract

A method for the structural characterization of 2D-nanofiller tactoids in the polymer matrix of a nanocomposite has been proposed to demonstrate that the mentioned tactoids are fractal objects with a dimension of 1.75–2.16. This variation of the structural state of tactoids is due to interfacial interactions. It has been demonstrated within the framework of percolation reinforcement theory that the structure of tactoids is the only factor governing the degree of reinforcement of nanocomposites. The efficiency of a nanocomposite is characterized by its ability to form interfacial regions.