Graphene-based Polymer Composite Materials

Abstract

Polymer composites with enhanced physical and mechanical properties are of great interest in many applications (e.g., E-textile, wearable electronics, heat sinks, sensors, batteries). Such light, durable, and cheap material can partially replace metals and ceramics to save energy and cost. Adding graphene in a polymer matrix has been employed to achieve such an enhancement.

However, the obtained properties of these composites were generally much lower than expected. The challenge is that many parameters like the orientation of graphene layers, the type of graphene used, and the preparation method play an essential role in dictating the properties of the composites obtained. The goal of this study is to develop a smooth, scalable, and robust method to make highly aligned graphene-based polymer composite films with enhanced mechanical properties and ultra-high thermal and electrical conductivity values that can be used in many applications. Also, in this work the effect of various parameters (e.g. the type of graphene used, the lateral size of graphene flakes and filler weight content %) were analyzed. Several characterization techniques like (Scanning Electron Microscopy, X-Ray Diffraction, Differential Scanning Calorimeter, Raman Optothermal Spectroscopy, and Laser Flash Diffusivity Analyzer) were used to study these composites. The effect of temperature was also studied on the mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of obtained composites. For the best of our knowledge, our results showed a high new record for in-plane thermal conductivity and electrical conductivity values of graphene-based polymer composite films, which demonstrate the importance and novelty of this research.