Effect of Rare Earth Elements on Tensile Properties of Glass Fiber Reinforced PTFE Composites
稀土元素对玻璃纤维增强PTFE复合材料拉伸性能的影响

Three types of surface modifiers, i.e. silane coupling agent SG-Si900 (SGS), a solution of rare earth elements containing SG-Si900 (SGS/RES), and a solution of rare earth elements (RES) were used for the surface treatment of glass fiber. The tensile properties of glass fiber reinforced polytetrafluoroethylene (GF/PTFE) composites under the different surface treatment conditions were investigated, and the fracture surfaces were analyzed by employing SEM. The experimental results show that RES is superior to SGS/RES and SGS in promoting interfacial adhesion between the glass fiber and PTFE due to the effects of rare earth elements. Meanwhile, the interfacial adhesion of the GF/PTFE composites treated with RES is mainly affected by the content of rare earth elements. The tensile properties of the GF/PTFE composites can be improved considerably when the content of rare earth elements is 0.2-0.4wt%, and the optimum performance of the GF/PTFE composites obtained is at 0.3wt% RE content.