Dynamic mechanical analysis and morphological studies of fly ash/mica reinforced poly(ether‐ether‐ketone)‐based hybrid composites

Hybrid composites based on poly(ether‐ether‐ketone) (PEEK) were fabricated with fly ash and mica. Nearly 5, 10, and 15 wt% of fly ash were replaced by mica of the optimized fly ash reinforced composites and were subjected to dynamical mechanical analysis to determine the dynamic properties as a function of temperature. The storage modulus E′ was found to decrease with the increase of weight fraction of mica. Loss modulus was also found to decrease with loading while the damping property was found to increase marginally. Peak height of tan δ for hybrid composites were decreased by varying combinations of fly ash with mica. It is probably due to improved crystallinity of PEEK and strong interaction between the fillers and PEEK matrix. Cole–Cole analysis was made to understand the phase behavior of the composite samples. Kubat parameter was calculated to study the adhesion between matrix and filler of the fabricated composites. Without surface modification for inorganic fillers, the distribution of two different shape filler particles appears to be reasonably uniform. The use and limitation of various theoretical equations to predict the tan δ and storage modulus of filler reinforced composites have been discussed. Addition of both fillers opens up new opportunities for development of high‐performance multifunctional materials suitable for industrial applications. Scanning electron micrographs of tensile fracture surfaces of composites demonstrated filler–matrix bonding. POLYM. COMPOS., 35:68–78, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers