Effect of MWCNTs Dispersion and Loading on the Rheological and Electrical Properties of MWCNTs/Silicone Composite

• Main Authors: Tao Mingkang, Gong Minjie, Wang Tongxin, Chen Feng, Liu Xiaoyun, Lin Shaoliang, Zhuang Qixin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: EDP Sciences 2016-01-01
• Series: MATEC Web of Conferences
• Subjects: Silicone Elastomer; Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNTs); Electrical Property
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/20166706072

The dispersion of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) in silicone was significantly affected by the method of mixing. In this study, rheology showed that there was an optimal mixing time to get the MWCNTs disperse well and high loading of MWCNTs made the suspension flow difficult. The stability of MWCNTs/silicone suspension was analyzed to estimate the degree of re-aggregation during the curing process. The dispersion and loading of MWCNTs affected significantly electrical properties of MWCNTs/silicone elastomer. With the extension of time stirred, the dielectric constant of 1 wt% MWCNTs/silicone elastomer increased from 17 to 216 while most high dielectric constant composites were only decades in number. The dielectric loss increased exponentially with the loading of MWCNTs, which made the high dielectric constant meaningless.