Influence of aluminum nanoparticle surface treatment on the electrical properties of polyethylene composites

In this study, we investigated the influence of the surface treatment of Al nanoparticles on the electrical properties of linear low density polyethylene composites. Octyl-trimethoxysilane was used as a nonpolar silane coupling agent for the surface treatment of Al nanoparticles. It was found that the incorporation of nonpolar octyl groups onto the surface of Al nanoparticles not only increased the percolation threshold and the resistivity but also improved the dielectric properties as compared to the composites filled with unsurface-treated nanoparticles. The surface treatment makes it possible to easily control the frequency and concentration dependences of dielectric constant and provided an excellent approach able to considerably reduce the dielectric loss of the nanocomposites, which is of great significance from the viewpoint of practical application of the polymer/metal nanocomposites in the electrical and electronic industries. It is concluded that the improved electrical properties could be directly ascribed to the good dispersion and special electrical feature of the surface-treated nanoparticles in the polymer matrix. (C) 2009 American Institute of Physics. [DOI: 10.1063/1.3053568]