Oxygen-plasma treated graphene nanoplatelet (OGNP), multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) and polycarbonate (PC) hybrid nanocomposites were prepared via a melting process using a twin-screw extruder. The contents of the OGNPs were in the range of 0.0 to 5.0 parts per hundred resin (phr), whilst the dosage of MWCNTs was kept at a constant of 2.0 wt%. Nanocomposites containing 2.0 wt% of MWCNTs and mixtures of 2.0 wt% of MWCNTs at 1.5 to 5.0 phr of OGNPs had tribocharged voltages, surface resistivities, and decay times, all within the electrostatic discharge (ESD) specification. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results revealed that the OGNPs slightly intercalated and distributed also within the PC matrix. The glass transition temperatureTgand heat capacity jump, at the glass transition stages of nanocomposite, slightly changed, as the contents of the OGNPs increased. The melt flow index (MFI) of nanocomposites significantly decreased when MWCNTs were added to the PC resin and slightly changed as the dosage of OGNPs was increased. Tensile Young’s modulus of nanocomposites tended to increase, as the elongation at break and impact strength decreased, when OGNP concentrations were increased. This research work exhibited that OGNP/MWCNT/PC hybrid nanocomposites do indeed have the potential to be used in ESD applications.

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Polymer blends of poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and polybutylene succinate (PBS) containing activated carbon (AC) were foamed by using Azodicarbonamide (ADC) through an extrusion process. The composite foams containing 5 phr of AC had lower density than those without AC loading for PLA:PBS ratios of 90:10, 80:20, 70:30, and 60:40. The incident of higher void fraction was the consequences of more foaming nucleation centers which were induced by adding AC in the composite foam. Maximum reduction of density by 50% with the void fraction of 50% was achieved when both ADC and AC were applied at 5 phr with the PLA:PBS ratio of 80:20. The addition of AC in composite foams enhanced the crystallization in PBS phase but had no effects on PLA crystallinity. The thermal stability of composite foams with and without AC dosages for each PLA:PBS proportion was slightly changed. For PLA-PBS blend foams, the more PLA loading there was the more tensile strength and modulus there would be. For PLA-PBS-AC composite foams, AC could improve the modulus and tensile strength of composite foams in PBS-rich samples whereas no effect on PLA-rich samples.