Mechanical, electrical and spectroscopic investigations of carbon nanotube-reinforced elastomers

This paper reports investigations carried out on elastomeric matrices filled with multiwall carbon nanotubes. A comparison with carbon black-filled polymers is also made. The state of dispersion of the fillers in the polymer matrix is evaluated through transmission electron and atomic force microscopies. Stress–strain measurements of the composites demonstrate that carbon nanotubes bring significant improvements in the mechanical properties with regard to the pure polymer. Infrared and Raman spectroscopies are shown to bring molecular insights into the structure/property correlations. Electrical properties of the filled materials are also analyzed in order to determine the so-called percolation threshold and the insulator–conductor transition corresponding to the formation of an interconnected filler network throughout the matrix.