Background: Carbon nanotube (CNT) characteristics, besides the processing conditions, can change significantly the microwave absorption behavior of CNT/polymer composites. In this study, we investigated the influence of three commercial multi-walled CNT materials with various diameters and length-to-diameter aspect ratios on the X-band microwave absorption of epoxy nanocomposites with CNT contents from 0.125 to 2 wt%, prepared by two dispersion methods, i.e. in solution with surfactant-aiding and via ball-milling.
Results: The laser diffraction particle size and TEM analysis showed that both methods produced good dispersions at the microscopic level of CNTs. Both a high aspect ratio resulting in nanotube alignment trend and good infiltration of the matrix in the individual nanotubes, which was indicated by high Brookfield viscosities at low CNT contents of CNT/epoxy dispersions, are important factors to achieve composites with high microwave absorption characteristics. The multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) with the largest aspect ratio resulted in composites with the best X-band microwave absorption performance, which is considerably better than that of reported pristine CNT/polymer composites with similar or lower thicknesses and CNT loadings below 4 wt%.
Conclusions: A high aspect ratio of CNTs resulting in microscopic alignment trend of nanotubes as well as a good level of micro-scale CNT dispersion resulting from good CNT-matrix interactions are crucial to obtain effective microwave absorption performance. This study demonstrated that effective radar absorbing MWCNT/epoxy nanocomposites having small matching thicknesses of 2-3 mm and very low filler contents of 0.25-0.5 wt%, with microwave energy absorption in the X-band region above 90% and maximum absorption peak values above 97%, could be obtained via simple processing methods, which is promising for mass production in industrial applications. Graphical AbstractComparison of the X-band microwave reflection loss of epoxy composites of various commercial multi-walled carbon nanotube materials.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s13065-015-0087-2 | DOI Listing |
ACS Nano
January 2025
State Key Laboratory of Materials Processing and Die & Mould Technology, and School of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, Hubei, P. R. China.
Intensifying the severity of electromagnetic (EM) pollution in the environment represents a significant threat to human health and results in considerable energy wastage. Here, we provide a strategy for electricity generation from heat generated by electromagnetic wave radiation captured from the surrounding environment that can reduce the level of electromagnetic pollution while alleviating the energy crisis. We prepared a porous, elastomeric, and lightweight BiTe/carbon aerogel (CN@BiTe) by a simple strategy of induced in situ growth of BiTe nanosheets with three-dimensional (3D) carbon structure, realizing the coupling of electromagnetic wave absorption (EMA) and thermoelectric (TE) properties.
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January 2025
Catalysts and Organic Synthesis Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, Iran University of Science and Technology, 16846-13114 Tehran, Iran.
Carbon microspheres (CMSs) are recognized as highly effective microwave absorbers due to their exceptional wave absorption properties. In this study, 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(4-aminophenyl)porphyrin, a metamaterial, was chemically bonded to CMSs─considered a conjugated carbon structure─using a 1,3-dibromopropane linker to explore the synergistic properties and microwave absorption capabilities of the synthesized composite. The synthesized structures were characterized by using X-ray diffraction, FE-SEM, Fourier transform infrared, diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and VNA analyses.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNat Commun
January 2025
College of Materials Science and Technology; Key Laboratory of Material Preparation and Protection for Harsh Environment; Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing, 211100, China.
With the development of nanotechnology, nano-functional units of different dimensions, morphologies, and sizes exhibit the potential for efficient microwave absorption (MA) performance. However, the multi-unit coupling enhancement mechanism triggered by the alignment and orientation of nano-functional units has been neglected, hindering the further development of microwave absorbing materials (MAMs). In this paper, two typical ZIF-derived nanomaterials are self-assembled into two-dimensional ordered polyhedral superstructures by the simple ice template method.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
January 2025
Electrical Engineering Department, Kuwait University, 13060, Kuwait City, Kuwait.
This article reports an Ultra wideband nano scale metamaterial absorber with ultrathin and flexible feature for visible spectrum applications. The absorber investigated for dispersion and Fano resonance characteristics to achieve metamaterial properties as well as independent of asymmetry of structure. Maximum visible spectrum wave interaction with the cascaded split nano square meta atom also ensured to achieve the absorption at highest percentage in numerical evaluation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFACS Appl Mater Interfaces
January 2025
Key Laboratory of Advanced Metallic Materials of Jiangsu Province, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, P. R. China.
Gradient structures are effective for microwave absorbing but suffer from inadequate lightweight and poor flexibility, making them fall behind the comprehensive requirements of electromagnetic protection. Herein, we propose a hierarchical gradient structure by integration with porous and sandwich structures. Specifically, polyimide (PI) foams are used as a robust and flexible skeleton, in which the foam cell walls are sandwiched by TiCT, ZnO, and ZrO atomic layers in sequence.
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