Bulk dispersion of single-walled carbon nanotubes in silicones using diblock copolymers

Event Abstract Back to Event Bulk dispersion of single-walled carbon nanotubes in silicones using diblock copolymers Ryan C. Chadwick1, Darryl Fong1, Nicole A. Rice1, Michael A. Brook1 and Alex Adronov1 1 McMaster University, Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Canada The interactions of a series of poly(3-decylthiophene)-block-polydimethylsiloxanes (P3DT-b-PDMS) with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are investigated. The formation of supramolecular complexes of P3DT-b-PDMS with SWNTs is studied in THF, toluene, xylenes, and CHCl3, and the resulting complexes are characterized by UV-Vis-NIR absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy. The P3DT-b-PDMS-SWNT and P3DT-SWNT complexes are further incorporated into a commercially available silicone rubber formulation. Percolation thresholds of <0.02% (P3DT-b-PDMS-SWNT) and <0.05% (P3DT-SWNT) are measured. A decrease in the percolation threshold when using the block copolymer for nanotube dispersion is observed, suggesting that the presence of a covalently-linked PDMS block improves SWNT distribution in the silicone elastomer and allows a percolation network to form at low SWNT loadings. In addition, it is found that entanglement of the silicone block of P3DT-PDMS with bulk silicones results in anchoring of the nanotubes within the composite, and leads to reversible conductivity changes upon repeated stretching and relaxation. Keywords: nanocomposite, nanotube, material design, Polymeric material Conference: 10th World Biomaterials Congress, Montréal, Canada, 17 May - 22 May, 2016. Presentation Type: Poster Topic: Composites: polymeric, ceramic and metallic Citation: Chadwick RC, Fong D, Rice NA, Brook MA and Adronov A (2016). Bulk dispersion of single-walled carbon nanotubes in silicones using diblock copolymers. Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol. Conference Abstract: 10th World Biomaterials Congress. doi: 10.3389/conf.FBIOE.2016.01.00715 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 27 Mar 2016; Published Online: 30 Mar 2016. Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Ryan C Chadwick Darryl Fong Nicole A Rice Michael A Brook Alex Adronov Google Ryan C Chadwick Darryl Fong Nicole A Rice Michael A Brook Alex Adronov Google Scholar Ryan C Chadwick Darryl Fong Nicole A Rice Michael A Brook Alex Adronov PubMed Ryan C Chadwick Darryl Fong Nicole A Rice Michael A Brook Alex Adronov Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.