Ultrahigh permittivity of polymer nanocomposites based on surface-modified amorphous carbon/MWCNTs shell/core structured nanohybrids

The key matter to achieve excellent dielectric properties is not only improving the interfacial bonding between nanocarbon materials and polymer matrix but also preventing the direct contact of adjacent nanocarbon materials. Unfortunately, few works have provided a feasible route to address these problems simultaneously. In this work, surface-modified amorphous carbon/MWCNTs shell/core structured nanohybrids (s-AC@MWCNTs) are prepared using a facile and environmentally friendly approach. On one hand, the amorphous carbon shell can isolate MWCNTs from direct contact. On the other hand, the surface modification of amorphous carbon shell obviously improves the interfacial bonding between s-AC@MWCNTs and poly (vinylidene fluride) (PVDF) matrix. As a result, the s-AC@MWCNTs can be monodispersed into the PVDF matrix to form numerous microcapacitors and thus enhance the dielectric performance of PVDF by 4 orders of magnitude. The largest dielectric constant of s-AC@MWCNTs/PVDF composites can reach 43800 while maintaining a suppressed dielectric loss below1.8. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.