Effect of Mixing Process and Morphologies on the Electrical Conductivity of PA6/EVA/CB Composites

Abstract

Nylon6 (PA6)/Ethylene-(vinyl acetate) (EVA)/carbon black (CB) composites with different electrical conductivity were prepared in an internal mixer. The factors influencing the electrical conductivity of the ternary composites were investigated, including mixing mode, mixing time and mass ratio of PA6 and EVA, and so on. Among three kinds of PA6/EVA/CB composites, including ones prepared by directly mixing (composites A), EVA and CB were mixed prior to melt-compounding with PA6 (composites B) and PA6 and CB were mixed prior to melt-compounding with EVA (composites C), the mixing time only significantly influenced the electrical conductivity of composites A. Good conductivity of the composites could be realized because the distance between CB particles became closer with the increasing of mixing time. However, the mixing time has no effect on the electrical properties of the composites B and the composites C, due to there were no CB particles migrated phenomenon happened. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to assess the fracture surface morphologies and the dispersion of the CB particles. The results showed that the dispersion of the CB particles significantly affects the electrical conductivity of the composites. Based on the study of the influence of various mass ratios of EVA and PA6 on the morphologies and electrical properties of PA6/EVA composites filled with 10 phr (parts per hundred resins) CB particles, we suggested that the mass ratio of EVA and PA6 affected the volume resistivity of the ternary composites significantly. In addition, the composites were almost insulation when the mass ratios of EVA and PA6 were 80/20 and 70/30, while the composites became conductivity with the mass ratio of EVA and PA6 higher than 60/40. The PA6/EVA/CB composites which CB particles locate at the interface of EVA and PA6 have the lowest volume resistivity when the mass ratio of two components was 60/40.

Keywords:

• Carbon black
• Electrical conductivity
• Ethylene-(vinyl acetate)
• Morphologies
• Polymer composites

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No: 21004052), Zhejiang Provincial Innovative Research Team (Grant No: 2009R50004), Educational Commission of Zhejiang Province (Grant No: Y200909285) and Foundation for the Talents by Zhejiang University of Technology (Grant No. 56710105002) is gratefully acknowledged.