Mechanical Properties of a Polymer at the Interface Structurally Ordered by Graphene

In this study, for the first time, molecular dynamics simulations helped identifying the substantial mechanical properties changes of a crystallizable polyimide related to the ordering of the polymer chains along the graphene surface. It is demonstrated that graphene-induced polymer ordering at the nanofiller-polymer interface leads to mechanical properties exceeding those of the unfilled amorphous polymer. Moreover, simulation results confirm that the mechanical properties anisotropy is related to the polymer ordering anisotropy induced by graphene-polymer interactions. (Graph Presented).