Electrically conductive graphene-coated polyurethane foam and its epoxy composites. (March 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Xinzhao, Xu; Guoming, Lin; Dongyan, Liu; Guoxin, Sui; Rui, Yang
• Is Part Of: Composites communications. Volume 7(2018)
• Page Start: 1
• Page End: 6
• Publication Date: 2018-03
• Subjects: Graphene-coated polyurethane foams -- Cellulose nanowhiskers -- Polymer composites -- Electrical conductivity
• DOI: 10.1016/j.coco.2017.11.003
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2452-2139

Abstract

Abstract: A facile method is presented to manufacture electrically conductive graphene-coated polyurethane foam (GPF) by dip-coating polyurethane (PU) foams in a graphene (GN) aqueous suspension containing cellulose nanowhisker (CNW) as dispersion assistant. The electrical conductivity of the GPF/epoxy composites reaches 2.46 S/m at a relatively low GN content (0.9 wt%), and the electrical percolation threshold is around 0.3 wt%. The structure observations reveal that the high electrical conductivity results from the 3D networks formed by GN nanosheets coated on the inner surface of PU foams. Moreover, CNW is a key factor to facilitate the formation of GN networks on the PU skeleton. The highest electrical conductivity is obtained at the CNW / GN weight ratio of 1:20. Highlights: Highly conductive GPFs and GPF/epoxy composites were fabricated via template-based dip-casting and vacuum assisted infiltration. Integral 3D GN networks were formed in the composites. CNW facilitated the formation of GN networks on the PU skeleton.