Electrical conductivity of epoxy resin–carbon black–silica nanocomposites: Effect of silica concentration and analysis of polymer curing reaction by FTIR

Electrical properties of epoxy resin–carbon black–silica nanocomposites are determined by conductive paths imparted by carbon black and influenced by a “network” of silica. Fractures are observed in nanocomposites with a high solids content, contributing to low conductivity. At these concentrations, the space occupied by the silica and carbon black particles causes the distance between reactants to be relatively large and the extent of cross-linking in the nucleophilic addition reaction between epoxy resin polymer and isophorone diisocyanate is reduced.