Probing the Role of Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)/Poly(styrenesulfonate)-Coated Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes in the Thermal and Mechanical Properties of Polycarbonate Nanocomposites

Abstract

The role played by multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) coated with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)/poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT/PSS) in the thermal and mechanical properties of polycarbonate (PC) nanocomposites was analyzed. We used differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) to demonstrate that the glass transition temperature of polycarbonate nanocomposites decreased whereas the storage modulus of the samples increased by including PEDOT/PSS-coated MWCNTs. These results indicated that PEDOT/PSS acts as an antiplasticizer. We attributed the enhancement of the storage modulus to the strong hydrogen bonding between PSS and the PC matrix and the reduction of the free volume in the PC matrix due to the shrinkage of PEDOT/PSS upon heating. We also investigated changes in the thermal conductivity and thermal degradation behavior of the nanocomposites. The results indicated that PEDOT/PSS did not play a significant role in improving the thermal conductivity and thermal stability of PC nanocomposites. The relative improvements in the conductivity and thermal stability of the samples that contained PEDOT/PSS were attributed to the better dispersion of the MWCNTs in the PC matrix.

High-ampacity conductive polymer microfibers as fast response wearable heaters and electromechanical actuators

“…31 Next, a weight loss of about 10 wt% occurs between 350 and 600 C, which is caused by the rupture of the polymer backbone. 8,31 . It is interesting to see that both as-spun PEDOT/PSS and EG/(PEDOT/PSS)/EG fibers remain fibrous structures after heating from 25 to 800 C (Fig.…”

“…[3][4][5] One of the most widely used conductive polymers, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)/poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT/PSS), is ideal for such applications because it is lightweight, and has good processibility, tunable electrical conductivity, suitable mechanical properties and good thermal stability. [6][7][8][9][10] Previous works have attempted to design electroactive materials based on PEDOT/PSS. The conversion of electri-cal energy into thermal energy has been realized using PE-DOT/PSS microfilms or silver nanowire/PEDOT/PSS transparent nanofilms as heaters, although the heaters had slow response times (15-80 s).…”

Manipulating selective dispersion of reduced graphene oxide in polycarbonate/nylon 66 based blend nanocomposites for improved thermo-mechanical properties

“…Such notable decrease in the viscosity of pure blend can be ascribed to lower viscosity of nylon 66 as well as interfacial slippage between the blend components. 60,61 Among PC and nylon, at a lower shear rate the viscosity of nylon was found to be higher than PC. However, with the increase in shear rate the viscosity of nylon decreases drastically and lowered as compared to nylon.…”

“…Both PNG and PGN nanocomposites possessed higher tensile strength, young modulus and elongation than pure polymers and neat blend this is due to the bridging effect of rGO on polymer matrices. 61,62 This recommends an enhancement in interfacial adhesion between polymer matrices which facilitate proper stress transfer on each component of nanocomposites. Thus, bridging effect improved both the strength and modulus at interfaces of nanocomposites that need more energy to pull out the nylon 66 phase from PC and result resists the fracture and increased the tensile strength.…”

Drastic modification of the piezoresistive behavior of polymer nanocomposites by using conductive polymer coatings

“…The possible reasons for this are (1) a better dispersion of the MWCNTs due to EPP acting as a dispersing agent and (2) a better interaction between fillers and the matrix. Indeed, it was demonstrated in [35] that PE-DOT/PSS leads to an increase in the stiffness in this material because of hydrogen bondings between PEDOT/PSS and PC and the free volume reduction in the PC matrix. Therefore, despite possible additional microstructural degradation mechanisms such as debonding between MWCNTs and the matrix, the dominant mechanism is the restriction of polymer chain mobility by the MWCNTs, which preserves the stiffness of the material.…”