Thermal and mechanical properties of CNT-Se90−xTe10Agx (x = 0, 5 and 10) glassy composites

Carbon nanotubes (CNT)-Se90−xTe10Agx (x = 0, 5 and 10) glassy composites have been synthesized by melt quenched technique. The XRD pattern confirms the amorphous nature of CNT-glassy composites under investigation. The crystallization kinetics of CNT- Se90−xTe10Agx (x = 0, 5 and 10) glassy composites have been studied by using differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) with different heating (5, 10, 15 and 20 K/min) rates under non-isothermal conditions. The glass transition temperature Tg, crystallization temperature Tc and overall activation energy for crystallization Ec have been determined. Also, order parameters n, m have been determined to study dimensionality of growth and nucleation during crystallization. The Vickers micro-hardness of samples under investigation is measured to see the effect of CNT incorporation in glassy systems. The results indicate that glass transition temperature and micro-hardness are enhanced for all investigated glassy systems after incorporation of CNT. The enhancement of these parameters with CNT content could be explained on the basis of increase in cross-link density due to modification of chemical bond formation in glassy system with CNT content, which is also confirmed from Raman spectra of investigated glassy composites.