Dielectric and Microwave Properties of Natural Rubber Based Nanocomposites Containing Graphene

Omar A. Al-Hartomy, Ahmed Al-Ghamdi, Nikolay Dishovsky, Rossitsa Shtarkova, Vladimir Iliev, Ibrahim Mutlay, Farid El-Tantawy

College of Telecommunications and Posts, Sofia, Bulgaria.
Department of Chemistry, Technical University, 8 Kl. Ohridski blvd., 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria.
Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia.
Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Suez Canal University, Ismailia, Egypt.
Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk 71491, Saudi Arabia.
Department of Polymer Engineering, University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy, 8 Kl. Ohridski blvd., 1756 Sofia, Bulgaria.
Hayzen Engineering Co., 24. Cad. KA-CL Is Merkezi No: 165/60 Ivedik OSB, 06370 Ankara, Turkey.

DOI: 10.4236/msa.2012.37064                

Abstract

The development of carbon nanotubes based materials has been impeded by both their difficult dispersion in the polymer matrix and their high cost. The discovery of graphene and the subsequent development of graphene-based polymer nanocomposites is an important addition in the area of nanoscience and technology. In this study the influence of graphene nanoparticles (GNP) in concentrations from 2.0 to 10.0 phr on the dielectric (dielectric permittivity, dielectric loss angle tangent) and microwave (reflection coefficient, attenuation coefficient, shielding effectiveness) properties of nanocomposites on the basis of natural rubber has been investigated in the wide frequency range (1 - 12 GHz). The results achieved allow recommending graphene as a filler for natural rubber based composites to afford specific dielectric and microwave properties, especially when their loading with the much more expensive carbon nanotubes is not possible.

Keywords

Nanocomposites; Natural Rubber; Graphene; Dielectric and Microwave Properties

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	S. Thomas and R. Stephen, “Rubber Nanocomposites Pre- paration, Properties and Applications,” Wiley, Singapore, 2010.
[2]	P. M. Ajayan, “Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube-Polymer Composites: Strength and Weakness,” Advanced Materi- als, Vol. 12, No.10, 2000, pp. 750-753. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1521-4095(200005)12:10<750::AID-ADMA750>3.0.CO;2-6
[3]	E. T. Thostenson, “Advances in the Science and Tech- nology of Carbon Nanotubes and Their Composites: A Review,” Composites Science and Technology, Vol. 61, No. 13, 2001, pp. 1899-1912. doi:10.1016/S0266-3538(01)00094-X
[4]	A. Krueger, “Carbon Materials and Nanotechnology,” Wiley, New York, 2010.
[5]	K. S. Novoselov, “Electric Field Effect in Atomically Thin Carbon Films,” Science, Vol. 306, No. 5696, 2004, pp. 666-669. doi:10.1126/science.1102896
[6]	H. J. Salavagione, G. Martínez and G. Ellis, “Graphene- Based Polymer Nanocomposites” In: S. Mikhailov, Ed., Physics and Applications of Graphene—Experiments, In- Tech, Rijeka, 2011, pp. 169-192.
[7]	M. J. Allen, V. C. Tung and R. B. Kaner, “Honeycomb carbon: A Review of Graphene,” Chemical Reviews, Vol. 110, No. 1, 2010, pp. 132-145. doi:10.1021/cr900070d
[8]	Y. Zhu, S. Murali, W. Cai, X. Li, J. W. Suk, J. R. Potts and R. S. Ruoff, “Graphene and Graphene Oxide: Syn- thesis, Properties, and Applications,” Advanced Materials, Vol. 22, No. 35, 2010, pp. 1-19. doi:10.1002/adma.201001068
[9]	O. C. Compton and S. T. Nguyen, “Graphene Oxide, Highly Reduced Graphene Oxide, and Graphene: Versa- tile Building Blocks for Carbon-Based Materials,” Small, Vol. 6, No. 6, 2010, pp. 711-723. doi:10.1002/smll.200901934
[10]	P. Mukhopadhyay and R. K. Gupta, “Trend and Frontiers in Graphene-Based Polymer Nanocomposites,” Plastics Engineering, 2011. www.4spe.org
[11]	R. K. Prud’Homme, B. Ozbas, I. Aksay, R. Register and D. Adamson, “Functional Graphene-Rubber Nanocompo- sites,” US Patent No. 7745528, 2010.
[12]	J. Liang, Y. Huang, Y. Ma, Z. Liu, J. Cai, C. Zhang, H. Gao and Y. Chen, “Electromagnetic Interference Shielding of Graphene/Epoxy Composites,” Carbon, Vol. 47, No. 3, 2009, pp. 922-925. doi:10.1016/j.carbon.2008.12.038
[13]	I. M. De Rosa, F. Sarasini, M. S. Sarto and A. Tambur- rano, “EMC Impact of Advanced Carbon Fiber/Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Composites for Next Generation Aerospace Applications,” IEEE Transactions on Elec- tromagnetic Compatibility, Vol. 50, No. 3, 2008, pp. 556- 563. doi:10.1109/TEMC.2008.926818
[14]	I. M. De Rosa, R. Mancinelli, F. Sarasini, M. S. Sarto and A. Tamburrano, “ Electromagnetic Design and Realization of Innovative Fiber-Reinforced Broad-Band Absorbing Screens,” IEEE Transaction on Electromagnetic Com- patibility, Vol. 51, No. 3, 2009 pp. 700-707. doi:10.1109/TEMC.2009.2018125
[15]	I. M. De Rosa, A. Dinescu, F. Sarasini, M. S. Sarto and A. Tamburrano, “Effect of Short Carbon Fibers and MWCNTs on Microwave Absorbing Properties of Polyester Com- posites Containing Nickel-Coated Carbon Fibers,” Com- posites Science and Technology, Vol. 70, No. 1, 2010, pp. 102-109. doi:10.1016/j.compscitech.2009.09.011
[16]	G. De Bellis, I. M. De Rosa, A. Dinescu, M. S. Sarto and A. Tamburrano, “Electromagnetic Absorbing Nanocom- posites Including Carbon Fibers, Nanotubes and Gra- phene Nanoplatelets,” Proceedings of the 2010 IEEE In- ternational Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility, Fort Lauderdale, 25-30 July 2010, pp. 202-207. doi:10.1109/ISEMC.2010.5711272
[17]	P. Banerjee and S. Biswas, “Dielectric Properties of EVA Rubber Composites at Microwave Frequencies,” Journal of Microwave Power and Electromagnetic Energy, Vol. 45, No. 1, 2011, pp. 24-29.
[18]	A. Kornev, A. Bukanov and O. Sheverdiaev, “Technol- ogy of Elastomeric Materials,” in Russian, Istek, Moscow, 2005.