An Experimental Study of the Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Polymer-Based Hybrid Composite Materials

This research aims to investigate how the incorporation of nanomaterials and carbon fibres influences the mechanical and thermal properties of silicone rubber resins.Hybrid composite materials were developed by adding various proportions of CuO nano-fillers (3% and 5% wt) and carbon fibres (0.5% and 1% wt).The samples were evaluated for tensile strength, compressive strength, thermal conductivity, and thermal expansion.Notably, adding 1% wt carbon fibre increased the compressive strength from 2.078MPa to 4.549MPa when combined with 5% wt CuO nanomaterial.However, a more balanced enhancement was observed in hybrid samples containing 3% wt nano-CuO and 0.5% wt carbon fibre, which resulted in a compressive strength of 3.631MPa and improved thermal performance, albeit with a reduction in tensile strength from 0.497MPa to 0.454MPa.Further increasing the CuO nanomaterial to 5% wt and carbon fibre to 1% wt led to significant improvements in compressive and thermal properties by 84% and 35%, respectively, although tensile strength decreased.This study demonstrates that while the addition of CuO nanomaterials and carbon fibres enhances compressive strength and thermal properties, it can also lead to a reduction in tensile strength.