Comprehensive investigation of epoxy/graphene oxide/copper nanocomposites: experimental study and modeling-optimization of mechanical characteristics

In the pursuit of advanced materials, researchers have turned to nanocomposites as a means to enhance both electrical conductivity and mechanical properties. The integration of copper nanoparticles (CNP) and graphene oxide (GO) into epoxy resin opened new routes for optimizing material performance, bridging the gap between electrical functionality and mechanical strength. This work, systematically examined the electrical conductivity, mechanical features, and optimized the mechanical characteristics of epoxy resin reinforced with CNP and GO using a multi-objective optimization design based on the genetic algorithm. The epoxy-based nanocomposites were reinforced up to 0.625 wt% of either GO or CNP and 1.25 wt% GO/CNP hybrid filler. Experimental results showed that the electrical conductivity increased in all nanocomposites by addition of fillers. Furthermore, the mechanical results indicated that tensile and flexural strength improved up to 47.54% and 26.83% in Epoxy/GO/CNP hybrid nanocomposite compared to the neat epoxy resin, respectively. Also, the optimum values were 41.62 MPa for tensile strength in 0.262 wt% GO and 0.018 wt% CNP, and 67.22 GPa for flexural strength in 0.344 wt% GO and 0.625 wt% CNP. Effective mechanisms of fillers have been analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and observed that agglomeration was dominant. These findings hold promise for advancing our understanding of nanocomposite behavior, particularly in the context of mechanical strength and electrical conductivity.