Electrical properties of low-density polyethylene/multiwalled carbon nanotube nanocomposites

Low-density polyethylene (LDPE)/multiwalled carbon nanotube (CNT) nanocomposites were prepared via melt compounding. The electrical properties of LDPE/CNT nanocomposites as a function of CNT volume content, frequency and temperature were investigated. The results showed that dielectric constant of LDPE/CNT nanocomposites increases slightly with increasing CNT content up to 1.9 vol. %. Thereafter, the dielectric constant of the nanocomposites increases sharply. The dielectric constant of LDPE/3.6 vol. % CNT nanocomposite is more than two orders of magnitude larger than that of pure LDPE. The frequency dependence of electrical properties of LDPE/3.6 vol.% CNT nanocomposite can be well described by the percolation theory. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.