Preparation and Characterization of Nylon 11/Thermally Expanded Graphite Nanocomposites

Nanocomposites based on nylon 11(PA11) and thermally expanded graphite(TEG) were prepared by directmelt compounding. Scanning electron microscope(SEM), transmission electron microscope(TEM) and X-ray diffraction(XRD) characterization showed that graphite nanosheets were dispersed in nanoscale in the PA11 matrix, and the resulted PA11/TEG nanocomposites exhibited a completely intercalated nanostructure. Thermogravimetric analysis(TGA) showed that the incorporation of TEG could improve the thermal stability of the nanocomposites. Mechanical testing showed that compared with neat PA11, the elastic modulus and the yield strength of the composite were greatly improved by about 149% and 34.5% respectively, with incorporating only 2% wt. TEG. Electrical conductivity of PA11 was notably enhanced by introduction of TEG. Nanocomposites with extremely low(1.0 wt.% TEG) percolation threshold were successfully obtained. In general, the degree of dispersion of TEG within polymer matrix played a vital role in property improvement.