Flexible and conductive PP/EPDM/Ni coated glass fiber composite for efficient electromagnetic interference shielding

Efficient electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding performance for sealing materials exposed to the environment has become an increasing requirement in the precision electronics, aerospace and military applications. Nowadays, it is still a big challenge to prepare EMI shielding seal material with recyclable and low cost characters. Herein, the flexible polypropylene/ethylene-propylene-diene monomer/nickel coated glass fiber (PP/EPDM/NCGF) shielding composite is fabricated via electroless deposition and melt-reactive blending method. The Ni layer coated on the surface of glass fiber constructs a 3D conductive network in the composite ascribed to the well-connected glass fiber skeleton. The composite exhibits an EMI SE of 22.2 dB and elongation at break of 126.5% by adding only 1 vol% Ni (16.36 vol% NCGF). The good mechanical property and satisfied EMI shielding effectiveness suggest that TPV/NCGF is a promising substitution to fabricate recyclable, lightweight and low cost shielding seal materials.