Shape and Temperature Memory of Nanocomposites with Broadened Glass Transition
Pierre Miaudet,1
Alain Derré,1
Maryse Maugey,1
Cécile Zakri,1
Patrick M. Piccione,2
Rabi Inoubli,2
Philippe Poulin1*
Shape-memory polymers can revert to their original shape when they are reheated. The stress generated by shape recovery is a growing function of the energy absorbed during deformation at a high temperature; thus, high energy to failure is a necessary condition for strong shape-memory materials. We report on the properties of composite nanotube fibers that exhibit this particular feature. We observed that these composites can generate a stress upon shape recovery up to two orders of magnitude greater than that generated by conventional polymers. In addition, the nanoparticles induce a broadening of the glass transition and a temperature memory with a peak of recovery stress at the temperature of their initial deformation.
1 Centre de Recherche Paul Pascal–CNRS, Université Bordeaux I, 115 Avenue Schweitzer, F-33600 Pessac, France.
2 Arkema, Groupement de Recherches de Lacq, RN 117, F-64170 Lacq, France.
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: poulin{at}crpp-bordeaux.cnrs.fr
