Enhanced mechanical properties of novel chitosan nanocomposite fibers

Novel chitosan (CS) nanocomposite fibers based on polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) and single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) have been successfully prepared by wet-spinning. Octa-ammonium (OA) and octa nitro phenyl silsesquioxane (ONPS) POSS were used in the study. The effect of SWNT and POSS concentration on the morphology and tensile properties of the nanocomposite fibers were investigated. The nanocomposites exhibited superior overall mechanical performance (strain at break, tensile stress, Youngʹs modulus, toughness) at low nano-filler loadings compared to pure chitosan. This was attributed to well-dispersed filler morphology as demonstrated by SEM results.