Quantitative dispersion evaluation of carbon nanotubes using a new analysis protocol

A new protocol is proposed for quantitatively characterizing the dispersion state of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) embedded in a composite. Such characterization will allow CNT-filled composites to be designed and tailored in more systematic manner. CNTs/polymer composites with different dispersions and distribution states were prepared and their structure was examined. Quantitative image analysis was performed to obtain a positional randomness index that involves the contributions from the dispersion and distribution of nanoparticles. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.