Processable conductive graphene/polyethylene nanocomposites: Effects of graphene dispersion and polyethylene blending with oxidized polyethylene on rheology and microstructure

Published Date

19 August 2016, Vol.98:143–155, doi:10.1016/j.polymer.2016.06.021

Title 

Processable conductive graphene/polyethylene nanocomposites: Effects of graphene dispersion and polyethylene blending with oxidized polyethylene on rheology and microstructure

• Author 

• Muhammad Z. Iqbal ^a
• Ahmed A. Abdala ^b,c
• Vikas Mittal ^d
• Sӧnke Seifert ^e
• Andrew M. Herring ^a
• Matthew W. Liberatore ^a,f,,

• aDepartment of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO 80401, USA
• bMaterials Science and Engineering Division, Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar
• cCollege of Science and Engineering, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar
• dDepartment of Chemical Engineering, The Petroleum Institute, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
• eX-Ray Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439, USA
• fDepartment of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA

Received 21 March 2016. Revised 1 June 2016. Accepted 7 June 2016. Available online 9 June 2016.

Abstract

Poor dispersion of graphene in non-polar polymer matrices creates composites with limited applications. A method to improve the dispersion of graphene in polyethylene (PE) via blending PE with oxidized PE (OPE) is examined. Graphene was produced by simultaneous thermal exfoliation and reduction of graphite oxide. Nanocomposites of graphene with PE as well as graphene with PE/OPE-blends were prepared by solvent blending. Improved dispersion of graphene in PE/OPE blends substantially decreases percolation from both rheological (0.3 vol%) and electrical (0.13 vol%) measurements compared to neat PE nanocomposites (1 and 0.29 vol%), respectively. A universal Brownian dispersion of graphene in polymers was concluded similar to that of nanotubes, following the Doi-Edwards theory. Micromechanical models, such as Mori-Tanaka and Halpin-Tsai models, modeled the mechanical properties of the nanocomposites. The nanocomposites microstructure, studied by small angle x-ray scattering, confirmed better dispersion of graphene at lower loadings and the formation of surface fractals in the blend/graphene nanocomposites; whereas only mass fractals were observed in neat PE/graphene nanocomposites.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

• Graphene
• Polyethylene
• Nanocomposites
• SAXS
• Rheology
• Micromechanical models.

---

Fig. 1.

Fig. 2.

Fig. 3.

Fig. 4.

 Table 1

Table 1.

Fig. 5.

Fig. 6.

Fig. 7.

Fig. 8.

Fig. 9.

Fig. 10.

Fig. 11.

Fig. 12.

Fig. 13.

Fig. 14.

Fig. 15.

Fig. 16.

• DOCX (1.7M)

• ∗ 
  Corresponding author. Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH 43606, USA.

For further details log on website :

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0032386116304967