Electromagnetic interference shielding properties of butyl rubber-single walled carbon nanotube composites

Butyl rubber (BR)-single walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) (BR-SWCNT) composites were prepared by solution mixing process to evaluate its electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding efficiency in the X and Ku band (8.2-18 GHz) frequency range for flexible electrostatic discharge shielding applications. Shielding properties of BR improved with SWCNT addition and EMI shielding effectiveness of about 9-13 dB was obtained for the composite with 8 phr of SWCNT loading in the measured frequency range. The experimental results reveal that absorption was the dominating shielding mechanism. The dielectric properties, conductivity and skin depth of BR-SWCNT composite were found to increase with SWCNT loading and were observed to be significant factors influencing EMI shielding properties of the developed composite. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.