Processing of dispersed and aligned multi-walled carbon nanotubes in polyvinylidene fluoride

Carbon nanotube (CNT)/polymer composites have many potential applications, however, because of the inherently strong affinity of CNT to themselves, uniform dispersion of CNT in polymer nanocomposites has been extremely challenging to achieve. This study reports a sequence of processing steps to enhance mechanical properties of CNT polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) composites. A combination of mechanical extrusion, chemical dispersion, and thermal treatment processes are demonstrated for improving both dispersion and uniaxial alignment of CNT in PVDF Optimal processing conditions are demonstrated in which 10 wt% CNT in PVDF composites showed a 77% improvement in tensile strength, one of the highest values for mechanical enhancement for CNT polymer composites to date.