Low electrical percolation threshold in poly(ethylene terephthalate)/multi-walled carbon nanotube nanocomposites

Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET)/multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) nanocomposites were prepared by three different methods: in-situ polymerization technique (I-S), direct mixing in the melt (DM) and dilution of a 0.5 wt.% masterbatch, synthesized via in-situ polymerization, using melt mixing (MB). The morphology of the resulting nanocomposites was examined using scanning and transmission electron microscopy and their electrical properties were characterized by ac conductivity measurements. The I-S series of samples exhibited an extremely low electrical percolation threshold (p_c ≈ 0.06 wt.%), as compared to values of similar systems previously mentioned in literature. The MB series showed a comparable p_c value (p_c: 0.05-0.10 wt.%), whereas the investigation revealed a higher p_c in the DM series (p_c: 0.10-0.20 wt.%). Finally, selected concentrations of samples were prepared using OH-functionalized MWCNT, following the I-S procedure. The conductivity of these samples was found to be lower than that of samples with non-functionalized MWCNT.