Surface functionalization of quartz fibres by direct growth of carbon nanostructures

The aim of the present work is to investigate the direct growth of carbon nanostructures (CNSs) onto quartz fibres to improve interfacial properties in polymer composites. Mechanical properties of quartz fibres are known to be reduced due to exposure to typical conditions (primarily temperature) for CNS growth, e.g., herein quartz fibres at 600 °C for 1h in air give a strength loss of 58%. Cu as a novel low-temperature (<500 °C) catalyst is explored as an alternative to the more typical Fe which requires temperatures higher than 600 °C. As part of a larger study, Cu- and Fe-catalysed CNS growth on quartz fibres are shown at high temperature (740 °C). Weibull analysis of the tensile data, FE-SEM investigation and X-ray diffraction analysis were carried out to identify possible damage mechanisms in the exemplary heat-treated fibres, setting up additional work to compare results at lower-temperature CNS growth known to be achievable with copper.