Carbon Nanotubes-Polypropylene Nanocomposites for Electrostatic Discharge Applications

We report a novel method for enhancing the dispersion of modified multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) in a polypropylene (PP) matrix for electrostatic discharge applications The surfaces of MWNTs were modified with octadecylamine (ODA) via CF4 plasma-assisted fluorination and Subsequent alkylamination the number of fluorine groups Oil the MWNT Surface was controlled by varying the CF4 plasma treatment conditions Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) revealed that reaction of the fluorinated MWNTs and octadecylamine (ODA) was strongly affected by solvent quality and reaction temperature The resulting MWNT/PP nanocomposites exhibited a much finer dispersion in the insulating PP matrix than was observed for nonmodified MWNT-s, leading to an enhanced electrical conductance at low MWNT loading (2 wt %) Furthermore, the nanocomposites showed significantly improved mechanical properties, the storage modulus (G') and complex viscosity (eta*) increased significantly in the low-frequency region as MWNT loading was increased. showing a rheological percolation threshold at 1 wt % MWNT loading This clTective method call be applied to the fabrication of other carbon nanotube-based polymer nanocomposites for potential development into electrostatic dissipative (ESD) materials with high mechanical strength and for other high-performance industrial applications