An Experimental Investigation on Charge Trapping Characteristics of Epoxy Nanocomposites based on Quantum Chemical Analysis

In this study, a novel approach is adopted to study the impact of nanoparticle addition on the trap characteristics inside the epoxy based nanocomposites. For this investigation, graphene (GP), TiO
2
(TA) nanoparticles and their hybrid combination have been used as nanofillers to study the mechanism of charge trap sites in epoxy (EP) nanocomposites. In addition, density function theory (DFT) is adopted to calculate the distribution of energy bands and electrostatic potential (ESP) distribution of nanoparticles and epoxy molecule, as well. Further, an improved model based on the isothermal relaxation current (IRC) is employed to study the de-trapping current of the epoxy nanocomposites. The depth of hole traps inside the EP/GP nanocomposite are observed to be higher than the pristine sample. Furthermore, the inclusion of GP and TA nanofillers, indicates an increase in the presence of shallow traps in the bulk insulation.