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Temperature-resistivity characteristics of a segregated conductive CB/PP/UHMWPE composite

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Abstract

A carbon black (CB)/polypropylene (PP)/ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) composite with a segregated structure was fabricated by using binary polymer granules as matrices. In preparation, an ethanol-assisted dispersion method was employed to disperse CB particles on the surface of the two polymer granules. The segregated conductive network was then constructed by hot compaction based on the volume exclusion effect of the polymer matrices. The conductive composite shows an ultralow percolation threshold of 0.34 vol.%. In temperature-resistivity test, a double positive temperature coefficient (PTC) effect was observed. In addition, the negative temperature coefficient (NTC) effect was eliminated significantly. These interesting temperature-resistivity behaviors were ascribed to the introduction of the binary polymer matrices and the mobility limitation of CB particles located at the PP/UHMWPE interface. These characteristics were probed by in situ morphology observation in heating process. The present paper provides a novel route for preparing conductive composites with an ultralow percolation threshold, a wider PTC region, and a zero NTC effect.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support of this work by the National Natural Science Foundation of China-Henan Talents Fostering joint Funds (Contract Number U1204507) and National Program on Key Basic Research Project (973 Program, Contract Number 2012CB025903).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Materials Science and Engineering, The Key Laboratory of Advanced Materials Processing and Mold of Ministry of Education, Zhengzhuo University, 450002, Zhengzhou, People’s Republic of China

    Yue Wei, Zeyu Li, Xianhu Liu, Kun Dai, Guoqiang Zheng, Chuntai Liu, Jingbo Chen & Changyu Shen

  2. Institute of Polymer Materials, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nuremberg, Martensstrasse 7, 91058, Erlangen, Germany

    Xianhu Liu

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  1. Yue Wei
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  2. Zeyu Li
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  3. Xianhu Liu
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  4. Kun Dai
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Correspondence to Kun Dai.

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Wei, Y., Li, Z., Liu, X. et al. Temperature-resistivity characteristics of a segregated conductive CB/PP/UHMWPE composite. Colloid Polym Sci 292, 2891–2898 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00396-014-3334-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00396-014-3334-5

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