The creep behaviour of poly(vinylidene fluoride)/“bud-branched” nanotubes nanocomposites

The creep behaviour of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF)/multiwall carbon nanotubes nanocomposites has been studied at different stress levels and temperatures. To fine-tune the ability to transfer stress from matrix to carbon nanotubes, bud-branched nanotubes, were fabricated. The PVDF showed improved creep resistance with the addition of carbon nanotubes. However, bud-branched nanotubes showed a modified stress-temperature-dependent creep resistance compared with carbon nanotubes. At low stress levels and low temperatures, bud-branched nanotubes showed better improvement of the creep resistance than that of virgin carbon nanotubes, while at high stress levels and high temperatures, the virgin carbon nanotubes presented better creep resistance than that of bud-branched nanotubes. DSC, WAXD, and FTIR were employed to characterise the crystalline structures and dynamic mechanical properties were characterised by DMA testing. The Burgers' model and the Findley power law were employed to model the creep behaviour, and both were found well describe the creep behaviour of PVDF and its nanocomposites. The relationship between the structures and properties was analysed based on the parameters of the modelling. The improved creep resistance for PVDF by the addition of nanotubes would benefit its application in thermoset composite welding technology.