High performance of reduced sulfonated graphite oxide nanoplatelets/polyurethane composites

• SGO is successfully reduced by HI with oxygen-containing functional groups removed.
• RSGO platelets are evenly distributed and showed good compatibility with PU matrix.
• RSGO endowed PU matrix with low percolation threshold.

In the study reported in this paper, sulfonated graphite oxide (SGO) was chemically reduced and then incorporated into a polyurethane matrix to produce reduced sulfonated graphite oxide/polyurethane (RSGO/PU) composites. Following reduction, the oxygen-containing functional groups attached to SGO had been effectively removed. The thermally conductive and electrical properties of RSGO/PU composites were thereby enhanced. Percolation thresholds of PU composites filled with RSGO were obtained at loadings below 1 wt%. The RSGO/PU composites exhibited improved gas barrier properties as the loading of RSGO was increased. Based on the fracture morphology investigation, the RSGO was evenly distributed throughout the PU composites and strong filler–matrix interactions were observed.