Investigation of the dispersion process of SWNTs/SC-15 epoxy resin nanocomposites

Due to their exceptional mechanical and functional properties, carbon nanotubes are considered by many researchers as one of the most promising reinforcement for the next generation of high-performance nanocomposites. Currently, nanotube dispersion is the most critical issue for developing high-performance carbon nanotube-reinforced composites. In this research, considerable improvements of the nanotube dispersion in single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT)/SC-15 epoxy resin nanocomposites were obtained through the use of tip sonication and the addition of acetone. Using different dispersion formulations and processing parameters, several nanocomposites samples containing 0.5 wt.% nanotubes were fabricated. Significant improvements in the mechanical properties of the resulting nanocomposites were illustrated by a 50.8% increase in the storage modulus. The significant improvements of nanotube dispersion and mechanical performance were attributed to the combined use of tip sonication and acetone as dispersion aids during sample processing. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.