Microwave absorption properties of multi-walled carbon nanotube (outer diameter 20-30 nm)-epoxy composites from 1 to 26.5 GHz

In this work, multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) (outer diameters (OD) in the range of 20-30 nm)-epoxy composites were fabricated. The MWCNT loadings in the polymer composites were controlled from 1-10 wt%. An Agilent PNA Network analyzer was utilized in the measurements of microwave absorption (MA) properties of these MWCNT-epoxy composites over a wide frequency range of 1-26.5 GHz. The measurement results showed that MA strongly depends on MWCNT loadings in the composites. In addition, the microwave reflection, transmission, and dielectric permittivity of the MWCNT-epoxy composites are also investigated. The composite with 8 wt.% MWCNT loading shows high microwave absorption as well as low reflection and transmission. These MWCNT-epoxy composites with 8-10 wt.% MWCNT loadings show a significant potential for microwave technology applications. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.