A Transmission Electron Microscopic Evaluation of Natural Rubber/Graphene Nanocomposite

Abstract

Evaluation of Natural rubber (NR)/graphene composite was performed using a transmission electron microscope (TEM). As a comparison, plain NR and graphene were also prepared and viewed under the same conditions. The NR and composite material were swelled in styrene, hardened by polymerization process, sectioned into lamellar at room temperature and stained by osmium tetroxide before viewing. As osmium reacts with alkenes in NR but not with polystyrene, a good contrast between the two materials can be achieved. We report TEM images of all the materials used in this study and how TEM images can be employed to relate the interaction between NR particles, with and without the presence of graphene. No obvious interaction between NR and graphene was observed in the composite sample but interparticle interactions between NR particles can be clearly seen. However, the increase in distance between NR particles, as observed in the swelled NR/graphene composite film, is an indication of lesser interparticle interactions. This observation explains the ineffectiveness of graphene as filler in NR, under the current preparation process.