Effect of interfacial/interphase conductivity on the electrical conductivity of polymer carbon nanotubes nanocomposites

Abstract

In this paper, the effective length and concentration of carbon nanotubes (CNT) in polymer CNT nanocomposites (PCNT) are formulated by conductivity transferring between nanoparticles and polymer matrix as well as interfacial conductivity. The effective terms and interphase thickness are applied to suggest the percolation threshold of CNT and the volume fraction of networked CNT in PCNT. In addition, a simple model is developed for conductivity of PCNT by the mentioned parameters and the tunneling distance between adjacent CNT. The predictions of conductivity are compared to the experimental results and the significances of all parameters on the conductivity are justified to validate the advanced model. The predictions of developed model show fine agreement with the experimental data. High conductivity transportation and large CNT can improve the conductivity of PCNT. Additionally, the optimized levels of conductivity are obtained by thick interphase and high interfacial conductivity.