Fabrication of high strength PVA/rGO composite fibers by gel spinning

Abstract

High strength composite fibers were prepared from poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) (degree of polymerization: 6100) reinforced by reduced graphene oxide (rGO). The macroscopically homogeneous PVA/rGO dispersion was obtained through solvothermal reduction of graphene oxide (GO) in PVA/dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)/H₂O solution, and then extruded into composite fibers by gel spinning followed by hot drawing. It was found that the mechanical properties of PVA fibers were greatly improved by incorporating rGO. At 0.1 wt% rGO loading, tensile strength increased from 1.8 GPa for the pure PVA fiber to 2.2 GPa for the PVA/rGO composite fiber. The results of mechanical properties and FTIR spectra for PVA/rGO composite fibers suggest the relatively strong interfacial interactions between rGO nanosheets and PVA that improve the load transfer from the polymer matrix to the reinforcing phase. Meanwhile, the thermal stability of the composite fibers was also enhanced by rGO addition.