Selective Localization Behavior of Carbon Nanotubes: Effect on Transesterification of Immiscible Polyester Blends

Abstract

Abstract The selective localization of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in an immiscible polymer blend has attracted much attention. If the two component polymers could react with each other, do selectively located CNTs affect those reactions? Here, an immiscible polyester blend based on polycarbonate/poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PC/PTT) is studied. CNTs introduced during melt mixing are selectively located in the PTT phase and on the phase interface during the middle stage of melt mixing. The interface‐located CNTs can act as additional substrate to catalyze or even participate in the transesterification themselves, homogenizing the phase morphology of the matrix blend. The degree of randomness of the composite systems is increased, accompanied by a reduced number‐average length of the copolymer sequences. magnified image