ABSTRACT
32Epoxy-silica polymer composites were prepared using an epoxy-dyan resin ED20 (Epoxy520) with 0, 2, and 5 wt% of silica PK300 (5 = 300 m2/g) with the original and modified (by initial epoxy resin) surfaces. The composites with epoxy-modified silica exhibited more homogeneous morphology compared with the composites with the neat silica. After curing, filled composites have higher resistance (compared with the unfilled) in aggressive ether acetate ink solvent, and similar resistance to concentrated HNO3. Epoxy modification of the fillers may enhance stability in solvents (e.g., 5 wt% of silica), but reduces resistance to nitric acid (at 4 wt%). Filling by neat silica gives it better thermostability, whereas epoxy-modified silica does not improve it. Filling leads to an increase in adhesion strength characteristics of composite. Modification of the filler can significantly increase the adhesion to steel. Thus, filling by neat silica can be a good method to improve a number of composite characteristics, and epoxy-modification of silica shows an additive effect.
