Protect aramid materials from UV‐induced damage by ANF and ANF/light stabilizer composites

Abstract Aramid materials have been applied in many important civil and military fields. But a major drawback to aramid materials is the susceptibility to UV‐induced damage. In this work, aramid nanofibers (ANFs) and ANF/nano‐ZnO composites were used to protect aramid materials from UV‐induced damage. ANF protective layer was created on the surface of aramid fibers, and the ANF‐coated aramid fibers could be further prepared to aramid paper. Moreover, ANF/nano‐ZnO composites were synthesized and used for stronger UV‐blocking ability. ANFs provided effective protection to aramid material. The properties after UV exposure (about 9.3 years in the natural environment) were largely improved: ANFs improved the retention rate of strength by 17.96% for aramid fibers and by 16.93% for aramid paper. ANFs also showed synergistic effect with UV‐absorbing inorganic nanoparticles. After UV exposure, the tensile strength of aramid paper with ANF/nano‐ZnO composites was even higher than the initial value (121.55%), and the retention rate of strength was 2.43 times higher than the original aramid paper.