Graphene incorporated poly(vinyl chloride) composites prepared by mechanical activation with enhanced electrical and thermo–mechanical properties

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study reports the improvement in electrical and thermomechanical properties of pristine poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) by the incorporation of graphene (GN) resulting in GN/PVC composites 137 mechanical activation (MA) using dioctyl phthalate (DOP) as dispersant. Microstructure, electrical, and thermomechanical properties of GN/PVC were systematically investigated. Scanning electron microscopy, mercury intrusion porosimetry, and particle size distribution analysis revealed that high‐energy ball milling destroyed the structure of pristine PVC and GN, without any visible agglomeration of GN in the resulting GN/PVC composites. At 0.13 wt% GN loading, the surface resistivity of GN/PVC composites was less than 3 × 10 8 Ω/square, meeting requirements of commercial antistatic PVC materials. Moreover, GN/PVC composites showed enhanced mechanical properties, thermal stability, and glass transition temperature than pristine PVC. Credited to enhanced thermomechanical and electrical properties of the newly designed GN/PVC composites, they could be deemed as potential alternative to classical PVC‐based antistatic materials in targeted applications. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2020 , 137 , 48375.