INFLUENCE OF THE FORMATION SPACE ON THE STRUCTURE AND PROPERTIES OF POLYMER/CARBON NANOTUBE NANOCOMPOSITES

Used at present numerous methods of processing of polymer nanocomposites define different conditions of this process and properties of final product. The conditions of the indicated nanomaterials processing can be described analytically by usage of dimension (fractal or Euclidean one) of space, which is realized for melt of nanocomposite in the present method of processing. In its turn, the indicated space dimension defines structure of nanofiller in polymer matrix, which is one factor, controlling properties of final nanomaterials under other fixed characteristics. It has been found that dimension of formation of nanofiller structure is equal to dimension of network of nanofiller particles (aggregates of particles), i.e. in the considered case - to aggregates of carbon nanotubes. It has been shown that enhancement of the indicated dimension leads to increase in fractal dimension of nanofiller aggregates, that gives positive effect for properties of final nanocomposites. Enhancement of fractal dimension of matrix polymer leads also to increasing the dimension of carbon nanotubes network, which characterizes the most important for nanocomposites negative effect, namely, aggregation of particles of initial nanofiller. It has been shown that increasing the dimension of aggregates (annual formations) of carbon nanotubes leads to enhancement of relative fraction of interfacial regions in nanocomposite, which are served as the same reinforcing element as and actually nanofiller. Hence, the quality of nanofiller as reinforcing element of nanocomposite structure is defined by its ability to generate high-modulus interfacial regions. From the practical point of view the development of methods of control particles network of nanofiller dimension is necessary.