Conductive and Self-Healing Carbon Nanotube–Polymer Composites for Mechanically Strong Smart Materials

Abstract

It is a great challenge to develop polymeric materials possessing multiple functionalities for their intrinsic properties. In our efforts to overcome this dilemma, we report a carbon nanotube (CNT)-doped polymer architecture design in this paper using a soft matrix synthesized from methacrylic acid and poly(ethylene glycol) methacrylate via reversible addition− fragmentation chain-transfer polymerization and further functionalized by 1-pyrenemethanol and doped with hard, stiff CNTs as fillers. The CNTs were dispersed evenly into the pyrenefunctionalized copolymers obtained via the solution blending method. Our approach is simple, low-energy-consuming, facile in operation, and highly efficient. The developed composites demonstrate high mechanical strength, self-healing ability, and high electrical conductivity. To further maximize the potential of our CNT-filled composites, we introduced a simple but effective means to align CNTs by directional stretching at elevated temperatures and so achieved significant mechanical and electrical reinforcement. The multifunctional composites produced in this paper have desirable properties for future applications such as conductive bioskins, healthcare monitoring sensors, and other functional conductive electronics.

Facile fabrication of dual-conductivity, humidity-responsive single-layer membranes: towards advanced applications in sensing, actuation, and energy generation

“…Conversely, Young modulus ( E ) increases with higher CNT percentages as their inherent mechanical properties and their interaction with the polymer matrix. 30 These findings indicate that CNT reinforcement can significantly enhance the mechanical properties of composite membranes, making them suitable for various advanced applications.…”

“…28 Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are highly versatile materials with unique properties e.g. high elastic modulus, mechanical strength, and high electrical conductivity [29][30][31] that renders them appealing for the creation of composite materials with diverse potential applications. 32,33 However, the intrinsic hydrophobic nature of CNTs and agglomeration caused by van der Waals forces pose limitations to their utilization in humidity sensing application.…”

Thermoelectric nanowires for dense 3D printed architectures

“…23,25 technique in which anisotropic 1D filler materials (not limited to conductive or magnetic materials) in the slurry can experience an intrinsically-present shear and extensional flow alignment of thermoelectric materials during extrusion from the micronozzle to enhance both structural and functional properties. [34][35][36] The efficient enablement of anisotropy engineering of thermoelectric materials during its extrusion process allows them to be a notable tool for engineering high thermoelectric performance 3D structures. In this proposed work, sintered 3D printed thermoelectric nanowires were able to achieve relatively high densities of up to 82.5% theoretical density.…”

Advanced Composites Inspired by Biological Structures and Functions in Nature: Architecture Design, Strengthening Mechanisms, and Mechanical‐Functional Responses

“…With the progress of preparation technology, structural materials are endowed with various functions and good mechanical properties, such as high strength and toughness composite, smart materials for sensing and self-healing, functional materials for drug delivery and self-cleaning, and so on. [103][104][105][106][107] Additionally, this field is developing in a more complex and functional direction that seamlessly blends artificial materials and natural materials, such as biodegradable cellulose composites, hydrogel structural materials for cell culture, biomimetic materials with molecular precision, etc. [108][109][110][111] In this review, our main purpose is to discuss the recent theoretical and experimental progress in the field of material strengthening by investigating the microstructure architecture in advanced materials.…”