Influence of TiO2-Fe3O4-MWCNT hybrid nanotubes on piezoelectric and electromagnetic wave absorption properties of electrospun PVDF nanocomposites

A novel approach was applied in order to fabricate multifunctional nanofiber mats. Titanium Oxide-Iron Oxide-Multiwall Carbon Nanotube (TiO2-Fe3O4-MWCNT) hybrid nanotubes were synthesized in chemical process for obtaining synergetic effect of dielectric, magnetic and conducive properties of TiO2, Fe3O4 and MWCNT respectively. Nanofiber mats of the TiO2-Fe3O4-MWCNT/PVDF with different ratios of the hybrid nanotubes (0, 1, 1.5 and 2 wt%) were produced using solution electrospinning method in order to obtain higher alpha to beta phase transformation and a porosity structure. Morphology, crystalline structures and alpha to beta phase transformation of the samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques. Also, the piezoelectric and electromagnetic wave absorption properties of nanofiber mats were investigated. Addition of the hybrid nanotubes into the PVDF promotes the crystallinity, alpha to beta phase transformation, piezoelectric and electromagnetic microwave absorption of the PVDF nanofibers. A fiber mat of the (TiO2-Fe3O4-MWCNT)2%/PVDF sample showed maximum piezoelectric sensitivity. Multilayer fiber mats of the (TiO2-Fe3O4-MWCNT)2%/ PVDF with low thickness (0.4 mm) showed significant maximum reflection loss (%85).