Preparation of Polystyrene/Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Composite and Its Characterization for Biochemical Applications

This study focuses on manipulating the properties of pure polystyrene by the fabrication of a novel composite incorporating nanotubes with the polymer. Polystyrene-single walled carbon nanotube (PS-SWNT) composite was prepared with different SWNT/polymer compositions, the resulting nanocomposite materials were studied and the effect of the different nanotube compositions on a variety of properties was studied. A change in the microstructure was observed using scanning electron microscopy where the nanocomposite had a more dense morphology and decreased porosity. In addition, the contact angle test showed that the incorporation of SWNTs enhanced the polymer's interaction with water and increased its hydrophilicity, while the conductivity test showed that this incorporation led to an increase in the polymer's conductivity depending on the percentage of SWNT in the composite. Finally, to investigate the possibility of using this PS-SWNT composite in biomedical and biochemical applications, the biocompatibility of the nanocomposite, pure polystyrene, and pure SWNT was investigated using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and showed no effect on the biochemical reaction, ascertaining that the novel composite can be used as a biomaterial at least in in vitro biochemical applications.