As vehicles become increasingly connected and electrified, the demand for
high-performance cables and electrical connectors is growing quickly. Electrical
insulation materials play an essential role in protecting and insulating those
critical components, ensuring reliability, safety and durability. The
development of a more robust composite material is essential to promote
sustainability and energy efficiency, in both component application and its
manufacturing processes. This research explores the development of advanced
nanocomposite material for automotive electrical applications. The nanocomposite
material comprises low-density polyethylene (LDPE), ethylene-vinyl acetate
(EVA), nanoclay (NC) and graphene oxide (GO), processed via melt mixing in a
twin-screw extruder. A design of experiments (DOE) was performed using
23, factorial design two levels and three variables (wt.% of EVA,
NC and GO), to evaluate the effect of each variable on the material performance.
Mechanical tests, (longitudinal stability, tensile strength and elongation at
break), electrical insulation (dielectric strength and electrical resistivity)
and flame-retardant properties were evaluated. The synergistic effect of GO and
NC improved nanofiller dispersion and polymer-filler interactions, leading to
enhanced structural integrity and efficiency for such applications. Experimental
results confirm that the developed material offers improved resistance to
deformation while maintaining excellent processability, that is critical for
automotive wiring protection. An optimization of EVA, GO and NC was performed,
and the nanocomposite material ensures enhanced insulation, mechanical strength
and environmental resistance.