The effects of liquid-type additives on the morphology, thermal conductivity, and mechanical strength of polyurethane (PUR) foams were investigated. The PUR foams synthesized with perfluoroalkane showed a smaller average cell diameter and a lower thermal conductivity than PUR foams prepared with propylenecarbonate or acetone. The average cell diameter of the PUR foams decreased from 228 to 155 lm and the thermal conductivity decreased from 0.0227 to 0.0196 kcal/mh 8C when the perfluoroalkane content was 0.0 to 2.0 php (parts per hundred polyol by weight). The perfluoroalkane likely acted as a nucleating agent during the formation of the PUR foams. The addition of perfluoroalkane induced the smaller cells size of the PUR foams probably due to lower surface tension of the polyol and perfluoroalkane mixture, resulting in high nucleation rate. The smaller cell size appears to be the main reason for the improvement in the thermal insulating and the mechanical properties of these PUR foams. The compressive strength of the PUR foams prepared with perfluoroalkane was higher than the PUR foams prepared with the propylenecarbonate and acetone. Based on the morphology, thermal conductivity, and compressive strength, it is suggested that the perfluoroalkane is an efficient liquid-type additive for the improving the thermal insulation of PUR foams.
In this study, the effects of filler characteristics and composite preparation methods on the morphology, mechanical property, electrical conductivity, and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness of the polypropylene/polycarbonate (70/30, wt%)/hybrid conductive filler composites were investigated. Nickel-coated carbon fiber (NCCF) was used as main filler and TiO2, multi-walled carbon nanotube, and graphite were used as second fillers in the composites. The pultruded NCCF/polypropylene composite was used in the preparation of the polypropylene/polycarbonate/NCCF/second filler composites. The electrical conductivity and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness of the polypropylene/polycarbonate/NCCF/second filler composites were compared with the type of second filler. The superior value of electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness was observed to be 51.6 dB (decibel) when the hybrid fillers such as NCCF (5.2 vol% or 20 wt%) and TiO2 (1.2 vol% or 5 wt%) were added in the polypropylene/polycarbonate (70/30) composite. The electrical properties of the polypropylene/polycarbonate (70/30)/NCCF/TiO2 composites was compared with the composite preparation methods, which were injection molding and screw extrusion. The results suggested that fiber length of the NCCF affected significantly to the electrical conductivity and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness of the polypropylene/polycarbonate (70/30)/NCCF/TiO2 composites.
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