Super Toughening, Strengthening, and Antimicrobial Behaviors of Cyclic Olefinic Copolymer/Few Layer Graphene Nanocomposites

High stiffness, strength, super toughness along with fungistatic and bacteriostatic properties of cyclic olefinic copolymer (COC)/few layer graphene (FLG) nanocomposites have been demonstrated. At lower concentrations (≤0.5 wt%), FLG is dispersed well in the COC matrix while agglomeration occurs at higher concentration (≥0.5 wt%) as revealed by x‐ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope. Both, strengthening and super toughening behaviors are exhibited by the COC/FLG nanocomposites. For instance, the tensile strength, modulus, and toughness of COC/FLG nanocomposites are enhanced ∼160%, 83%, and one order of magnitude, respectively. Such reinforcement and super toughening mechanisms are pertaining to the effective dissipation of loads across polymer/filler interfaces owing to their good interfacial interactions. Thereby, delays the process of crack growth by avoiding the generation of stress concentration sites. Moreover, antimicrobial properties of COC/FLG nanocomposites are also improved. As compared with neat COC, the nanocomposite system inhibits both bacterial and fungal growth under the area of the film, displaying bacteriostatic as well as fungistatic characteristics. POLYM. COMPOS., 40:536–543, 2019. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers