High electrical conductivity and anisotropy of aligned carbon nanotube nanocomposites reinforced by silicon carbonitride

Aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) sheets reinforced with silicon carbonitride were prepared by the infiltration and pyrolysis of liquid polysilazane into mechanically stretched CNTs. The resultant nanocomposites contained a high volume fraction of CNTs (60 vol%), and due to alignment, reached an electrical conductivity of up to 22 x 10(5) S m(-1). The electrical conductivity was anisotropic based upon the CNT alignment and changed from 3.3 to 9.2 after the pyrolysis process. The high electrical conductivity of the nanocomposites contributes to their potential application in electromagnetic interference shielding. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.