Research on Thermal Conductivity and Mechanical Properties Control of Epoxy Resin in Extreme Environments

In high-altitude regions with plentiful renewable energy resources, extreme environmental conditions—including substantial temperature variations, elevated humidity levels, intense radiation, and low air pressure—impose heightened demands on the insulation systems of electric power equipment. Consequently, there is an escalating imperative to engineer insulating materials that exhibit both elevated thermal conductivity and substantial dielectric strength. The fundamental physicochemical characteristics of epoxy resin-cured structures may undergo alterations in high humidity environments. Contemporary modification methodologies primarily focus on enhancing the performance of epoxy resin through the incorporation of high thermal conductivity nanomaterials. A comprehensive series of molecular simulations and analytical studies were conducted to elucidate the modification mechanism of three nanoparticle fillers, namely carbon nanotubes, graphene, and SiO<inf xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</inf>, within the epoxy resin matrix, as well as their humidity-responsive properties. A molecular model of the nanofiller-enhanced epoxy resin was constructed, and different concentrations of water molecules were introduced for the humidity environment simulation. The changing rules of the thermal diffusion properties, mechanical properties, glass transition temperature, and dielectric properties of the composites under the humid environment were systematically explored. The study found that graphene exhibited exceptional performance in optimizing mechanical and thermal properties, with carbon nanotubes ranking second. Additionally, the dielectric constant of SiO<inf xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</inf> was observed to surpass that of other systems in terms of humidity adaptation.