Dear Colleagues,

Epoxy resins are known for their excellent chemical resistance, high specific strength, good dimensional stability, and adhesion properties. Epoxy resins can be used as liquids or powders, which facilitates their mixing with reactive or non-reactive modifiers. Due to their specific properties, they are used as paints, coatings, adhesives, and matrices for structural composites. However, once cured, epoxy resins are brittle with low strain at break, low impact strength, and low resistance to crack propagation. The modification of epoxy resins to improve mentioned properties has been the subject of intense research interest in the last four decades. They have been successfully toughened using various suitable modifiers, such as synthetic and natural fibers, microparticles, thermoplastics, reactive liquid rubbers, plasticizers, and nanoparticles. Different mechanisms have been proposed to explain the improvement in the properties of epoxy resins depending on the modifier used. The toughening of epoxy resins was attributed to various mechanisms, such as crack-pinning, phase separation, plastic deformation, interpenetrating polymer network formation, and exfoliation of nanoparticles. The use of two different modifiers leading to the preparation of polymer hybrid composites makes it possible to take advantage of the synergistic effect with a greater improvement in the performance properties of the composite. An adequate selection of modifiers could lead to specific interactions between the components of the hybrid composite and, therefore, to a greater improvement in properties, but also to avoiding undesirable results. However, although various studies are still devoted to epoxy composites, there is a great challenge to produce epoxy hybrid nanocomposites based on renewable resources with improved performance properties and taking into account environmental protection.

The aim of this Special Issue is to collect original research papers on the latest developments in the field of hybrid epoxy nanocomposites, including the conditions of their preparation, evaluation of properties, and enhancement of mechanisms of properties and fields of application.

Prof. Dr. Mohamed Bakar
Dr. Wojciech Kucharczyk
Guest Editors

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• epoxy resins
• hybrid nanocomposites
• evaluation of properties
• structure
• morphology
• applications