Preparation of Electrically Conducting Bamboo Paper Using Multi‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes

Abstract

AbstractThe electrically conducting composite paper is prepared by incorporating the cellulosic pulp extracted mechano‐chemically from a bamboo species, Arundinaria falcata, locally called Nigalo, with different amounts of multi‐walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The raw and processed fibers as well as the composite papers with MWCNTs are examined with Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction (XRD), polarizing optical microscopy (POM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The four‐probe method is utilized to quantify the conductivity of the nanocomposite paper. The FTIR study reveals the removal of non‐cellulosic components of plant fibers such as hemicelluloses, lignin, pectin, etc. during the chemical treatment. XRD analysis shows that the crystallinity of raw fiber increases from 56% to 63% after bleaching. The POM imaging of different samples also indicates an increase in the smoothness of the particle morphology, a decrease in particle size, and removal of lignin during the chemical treatment as suggested by the FTIR study. The composite paper comprising 5 and 10 wt% of MWCNT shows exceptionally high bulk conductivity of 1.56 and 6.27 S cm−1, respectively.