High-performance polymer/nanodiamond composites: synthesis and properties

Abstract

Conjugated polymer/nanodiamond nanocomposites have been known as high-performance materials due to improved physical properties relative to conventional composites. In this attempt, novel conjugated polymer/nanodiamond nanocomposites were successfully prepared by in situ oxidative polymerization. Physical characteristics of the resultant nanocomposites were explored using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscope, differential scanning calorimeter, thermogravimetric analysis and X-ray diffraction spectroscopy. Structural analysis revealed the oxidative polymerization of various matrices [polyaniline (PANi), polypyrrole (PPy), polythiophene (PTh) and polyazopyridine (PAP)] over the surface of functionalized (F-NDs) and non-functionalized nanodiamonds (NF-NDs) thus ensuing NF-NDs/PAP/PANi/PPy, F-NDs/PAP/PANi/PPy, NF-NDs/PANi/PPy/PTh and F-NDs/PANi/PPy/PTh nanocomposites. FESEM images depicted the fibrillar morphology of resulting nanocomposites with granular arrangement of nanofiller in matrix. Thermal analysis results showed that the functionalized F-NDs/PAP/PANi/PPy hybrid had higher value of 10 % weight loss around 489 °C relative to F-NDs/PANi/PPy/PTh with T10 at 471 °C. The glass transition temperature was found to be 99 and 105 °C for NF-NDs/PANi/PPy/PTh and F-NDs/PANi/PPy/PTh, respectively. On the other hand, NF-NDS/PAP/PANi/PPy and F-NDs/PAP/PANi/PPy showed higher T g’s of 109 and 118 °C. The conductivity of NF-NDs/PAP/PANi/PPy was 3.8 Scm−1 and improved with the functionalized filler loading in F-NDs/PAP/PANi/PPy up to 5.4 Scm−1, while NF-NDs/PANi/PPy/PTh and F-NDs/PANi/PPy/PTh had relatively lower values around 2.9 and 3.7 Scm−1, respectively. New conducting nanocomposites may act as useful contenders in significant industrial applications such as polymer Li-ion battery.