Pilot-scale fabrication and analysis of graphene-nanocomposite fibers

Abstract

Graphene/polymer composites can be spun into fibers with remarkable mechanical, thermal and electrical properties, but few studies have considered requirements for the pilot-scale production of such fibers using commercially available graphene nanoplatelets (GnP). To address this limitation, we fabricated melt-spun polyamide 6 (PA6) multifilament yarns in which 3% or 5% (w/w) GnP was incorporated into the PA6 matrix by melt compounding during the initial process step. We tested a range of melt-spinning process parameters and analyzed the properties of the resulting fibers in detail. We were able to fabricate yarns containing 24 single filaments at a maximum winding speed of 1800 m/min while applying a draw ratio of 2.5. The electrical conductivity of the as-spun yarns was in the 10 μS/m range, which is suitable for the production of anti-static textiles. Furthermore, the degree of crystallization declined as the GnP content increased, reducing the tenacity of the yarn but improving its elastic modulus, allowing the production of composite textiles. In conclusion, we confirmed that large amounts of graphene can be incorporated into PA6 polymers by melt spinning and that the resulting composite fibers are suitable for multiple downstream applications in the textile industry.