Durability of Polymer Micro- and Nano-Composites

Dear Colleagues,

High-performance polymer composites find use as structural materials in various outdoor applications, including aerospace, marine, transportation, energy, and infrastructure, due to their light weight, enhanced mechanical performance, corrosion resistance, and low maintenance cost. One important aspect that needs to be addressed for the successful application of polymer composites is related to their overall performance to the service environment. This includes their response to fatigue, creep, impact, as well as environmental loading. Thus, in addition to mechanical deterioration, the long-term durability of polymer composites has been in the spotlight the last few decades, since deterioration of their performance due to environmental exposure is still a major challenge for this type of materials. Most common conditions that promote degradation and durability loss include exposure to high or low temperatures, thermal shock, radiation, liquids or gases, etc.

At the same time, a significant amount of effort has been concentrated on improving the performance of polymer composites through innovation in materials, design, manufacturing, prediction of long-term behavior, and new evaluation methodologies. The introduction of nanoscale inclusions to improve the damage tolerance and enhance the damage sensing capabilities of polymers and microcomposites has also drawn attention lately.

Based on the above, this Special Issue is oriented at all types of polymer matrix composites, reinforced with micro- and/or nano-inclusions. Advances in all aspects that influence/improve the durability of polymer composites are of interest. Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere. All manuscripts are refereed through a peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts are available on the journal’s website.

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Nektaria-Marianthi Barkoula
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.