pps proceeding - Abstract Preview
pps proceeding
Symposium: S09 - Polymer nanocomposites
Poster Presentation
 
 

Electrical conductivity of nanostructures of N-doped multiwall carbon nanotubes synthesized with different catalysts intertwined with polyaniline/polyamide 6 nanofibers

Bretas Rosário (1)*, Sundararaj Uttandaraman (2), Santos João Paulo Ferreira (3), Arjmand Mohammad (2), Melo Guilherme França (1), Chizari Kambiz (2)

(1) Federal University of São Carlos - São Paulo - Brazil, (2) University of Calgary - Alberta - Canada, (3) State University of Ponta Grossa - Paraná - Brazil

Semi conductive, porous nanostructures and with very high surface area constituted by polyamide 6 (PA6)/polyaniline (PAni) nanofibers coated with nitrogen-doped carbons nanotubes (N-CNTs) were obtained. The effect of the type of catalyst and temperature used in the N-CNT’s synthesis, the structure and the final electrical conductivity of the N-CNTs and the nanostructures was studied. N-CNTs synthetized with three types of catalyst were used: Iron (Fe), Cobalt (Co) and Nickel (Ni). For the N-CNTs (Fe) the synthesis temperature was varied: 650°C, 750°C, 850°C and 950°C. The PA6/PAni nanofibers mats were produced using the electrospinning technique. For the coating with N-CNTs, the electrospun nanofiber mats were dipped in aqueous solution containing the N-CNTs dispersed and stabilized by a surfactant. The N-CNTs, the nanofiber mats and the nanostructures produced were morphologically characterized by scanning and transmission electronic microscopy (SEM and TEM). The N-CNTs were structurally characterized by Raman and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The mass fraction of deposited N-CNTs was calculated by weighing. The electrical conductivity of N-CNTs pellets and nanostructures was measured by the four-point DC conductivity method. The results revealed that by varying the synthesis conditions, N-CNTs with different morphologies, structures and doping levels were obtained. The results showed, however, that such differences did not exert a large difference in the conductivity of compacted bulks of these N-CNTs. The conductivities of these bulks were practically of the same order of magnitude. However, for the nanostructures coated with N-CNTs, different behaviors were observed. The results suggest that higher aspect ratio of the N-CNTs, higher oxide content in the N-CNTs and the presence of PAni in the nanofibers contributed the interaction between N-CNTs and nanofibers resulting in the formation of a percolated network more easily.