Largely enhanced thermal and mechanical properties of polymer nanocomposites via incorporating C60@graphene nanocarbon hybrid

• Published in: Nanotechnology Vol. 24; no. 50; p. 505706
• Main Authors: Song, Ping'an, Liu, Lina, Huang, Guobo, Yu, Youming, Guo, Qipeng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bristol IOP Publishing 20.12.2013; Institute of Physics
• Subjects: Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Exact sciences and technology; Fullerenes and related materials; diamonds, graphite; Materials science; Mechanical and acoustical properties of condensed matter; Mechanical properties of nanoscale materials; Nanocrystalline materials; Nanoscale materials and structures: fabrication and characterization; Physics; Specific materials; Thermal properties of condensed matter; Thermal properties of small particles, nanocrystals, nanotubes; Nanohybrid; Nanosheet; Mechanical properties; Dispersions; Mechanical stability; Tensile strength; Thermal stability; Aggregation; Young modulus; Thermal properties; Trapping; Nanocomposites; Graphene; Fullerenes; Stress effects; Polymers; Nanostructured materials
• ISSN: 0957-4484; 1361-6528
• DOI: 10.1088/0957-4484/24/50/505706

Although considerable progress has been achieved to create advanced polymer nanocomposites using nanocarbons including fullerene (C60) and graphene, it remains a major challenge to effectively disperse them in a polymer matrix and to fully exert their extraordinary properties. Here we report a novel approach to fabricate the C60@graphene nanocarbon hybrid (C60: ∼47.9 wt%, graphene: ∼35.1%) via three-step reactions. The presence of C60 on a graphene sheet surface can effectively prevent the aggregation of the latter which in turn helps the dispersion of the former in a polymer matrix during melt-processing. C60@graphene is found to be uniformly dispersed in a polypropylene (PP) matrix. Compared with pristine C60 or graphene, C60@graphene further improves the thermal stability and mechanical properties of PP. The incorporation of 2.0 wt% C60@graphene (relative to PP) can remarkably increase the initial degradation temperature by around 59 ° C and simultaneously enhance the tensile strength and Young's modulus by 67% and 76%, respectively, all of which are higher than those of corresponding PP/C60 (graphene) nanocomposites. These significant performance improvements are mainly due to the free-radical-trapping effect of C60, and the thermal barrier and reinforcing effects of graphene nanosheets as well as the effective stress load transfer. This work provides a new methodology to design multifunctional nanohybrids for creating advanced materials.