Thermal and Mechanical Properties of Polypropylene Composites With Graphene Nanoplatelets or Zirconium Oxide

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the effects of graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) and zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 ) as fillers in polypropylene (PP) composites. Different concentrations of GNP (0.01, 0.10, and 0.50 wt.%) and ZrO 2 (0.50, 1.00, 2.50 wt.%) were evaluated. Composites were characterized by morphological analysis by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDS), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), tensile and flexural tests. TGA showed that ZrO 2 improved the thermal stability of PP, increasing T 5% from 410.5°C (neat PP) to 452.0°C, and T 50% from 452.9°C to 479.1°C when modified with 2.5 wt.% of ZrO 2 . GNP promoted an increase in crystallinity up to 10.6% compared to neat PP, while ZrO 2 increased by up to 16.2%. Mechanical tests showed that tensile and flexural strength did not have significant variations. DMTA results showed that the incorporation of nanoparticles increased stiffness by reducing molecular segmental mobility and enhanced the viscoelastic stability of PP across the entire temperature range. Through SEM/EDS microscopy, it was possible to observe the presence of Zr in the composites containing ZrO 2 and O in the composites reinforced with GNP.