Influence of graphene nanoplatelets geometrical characteristics on the properties of polylactic acid composites

The influence of graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) surface area and size on the dispersion, electrical percolation behavior, electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, electromagnetic interference (EMI) attenuation, and EMI attenuation mechanisms of GNP/polylactic acid (PLA) were investigated. The GNP/PLA composite's electrical percolation threshold decreased with the increase in GNP surface area and decrease in GNP size. The higher number of GNP particles associated with the decrease in GNP size and increase in GNP surface area facilitated the creation of a conductive network at a lower GNP content. However, at a GNP loading of 30 wt%, the GNP/PLA composites' electrical, EMI SE, and thermal conductivity decreased with the increase in GNP surface area and decrease in GNP size. At high nanofiller loading, the contact resistance between the nanofiller particles is more important than the nanofiller aspect ratio or size. The smaller filler size means more particles and more filler/filler resistance points. The most exciting finding is the dependence of EMI attenuation mechanisms on the GNP surface area. EMI attenuation by absorption was found to increase with the increase in GNP surface area.