Synthesis and characterization of polyethylene chains grafted onto the sidewalls of single‐walled carbon nanotubes via copolymerization |
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Authors: | Shiyun Li Hui Chen Wuguo Bi Jianjun Zhou Yanhui Wang Jianzhong Li Wenxi Cheng Meiye Li Lin Li Tao Tang |
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Institution: | 1. State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, China;2. Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100039, China;3. State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100080, China;4. State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, China |
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Abstract: | Polyethylene (PE) chains grafted onto the sidewalls of SWCNTs (SWCNT‐g‐PE) were successfully synthesized via ethylene copolymerization with functionalized single‐walled carbon nanotubes (f‐SWCNTs) catalyzed by rac‐(en)(THInd)2ZrCl2/MAO. Here f‐SWCNTs, in which α‐alkene groups were chemically linked on the sidewalls of SWCNTs, were synthesized by Prato reaction. The composition and microstructure of SWCNT‐g‐PE were characterized by means of 1H NMR, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analyses (TGA), field‐emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), and transmission electron microscope (TEM). Nanosized cable‐like structure was formed in the SWCNT‐g‐PE, in which the PE formed a tubular shell and several SWCNTs bundles existed as core. The formation of the above morphology in the SWCNT‐g‐PE resulted from successfully grafting of PE chains onto the surface of SWCNTs via copolymerization. The grown PE chains grafted onto the sidewall of the f‐SWCNTs promoted the exfoliation of the mass nanotubes. Comparing with pure PE, the physical mixture of PE/f‐SWCNTs and in situ PE/SWCNTs mixture, thermal stability, and mechanical properties of SWCNT‐g‐PE were higher because of the chemical bonding between the f‐SWCNTs and PE chains. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 5459–5469, 2007 |
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Keywords: | carbon nanotubes copolymerization modification polyethylene (PE) synthesis |
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