A review concerning the main factors that interfere in the electrical percolation threshold content of polymeric antistatic packaging with carbon fillers as antistatic agent

A Review on Multifunctional Polymer-MXene Hybrid Materials for Electronic Applications

MXenes, a family of two-dimensional (2D) transition metal carbides, carbonitrides, and nitrides, have emerged as a promising class of nanomaterials for interdisciplinary applications due to their unique physiochemical properties. The large surface area, excellent electrical conductivity, superior mechanical properties, and abundant possible functional groups make this layered nanomaterial an ideal candidate for multifunctional hybrid materials for electronic applications. This review highlights recent progress in MXene-based hybrid materials, focusing on their electrical, dielectric, and electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding properties, with an emphasis on the development of multifunctionality required for advanced electronic devices. The review explores the multifunctional nature of MXene-based polymer nanocomposites and hybrid materials, covering the coexistence of a diverse range of properties, including sensory capabilities, electromagnetic interference shielding, energy storage, and the Joule heating phenomenon. Finally, the future outlook and key challenges are summarized, offering insights to guide future research aimed at improving the performance and functionality of MXene-polymer nanocomposites.

Tuning the Morphology of Immiscible Polymer Blend-Based Hybrid Nanocomposite for Improving Microwave Absorption Response

Polymer-blend-based nanocomposites incorporating carbon nanomaterials hold significant potential for microwave absorption materials (MAM) applications. This study investigates the microwave absorption response of hybrid nanocomposites composed of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and nanographite, prepared using industrial-like melt-mixing masterbatch strategies in a polycarbonate/acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer (PC/ABS) blend matrix with varying blend ratios (100/0, 80/20, 60/40, 50/50, 40/60, 20/80, and 0/100) and a constant filler content (2 wt % MWCNT and 2 wt % nanographite). Furthermore, the PC/ABS (40/60) blend-based nanocomposite was prepared with the addition of a compatibilizer, 5 wt % of maleic anhydride grafted ABS (ABS-g-MAH), to verify possible changes in morphology. Morphology, rheology, mechanical, electrical, and electromagnetic properties were correlated. From a morphological perspective, a preferential distribution of MWCNTs within the PC phase was observed, with the different blend ratios leading to a transition from a dispersed matrix morphology in 80/20 and 20/80 (PC/ABS) to cocontinuous morphologies in the intermediate blends (60/40, 50/50, and 40/60). The addition of ABS-g-MAH as a compatibilizer resulted in significant morphological refinement. Electromagnetic properties, evaluated using both X-band rectangular waveguide and broadband coaxial airline techniques, as well as electrical conductivity, were found to be strongly influenced by the varying morphologies. The nanocomposite PC/ABS/ABS-g-MAH with a thickness of 3.0 mm presented a Reflection Loss (RL) of -29.4 dB at 9.44 GHz, with a bandwidth of 3 GHz. Across the broadband spectrum, RL values below -10 dB were observed, including at lower frequencies around 3.70 GHz. These findings suggest that morphological tuning of the polymer matrix offers a promising pathway for optimizing microwave absorption in hybrid nanocomposites.

Review of Recent Progress on Silicone Rubber Composites for Multifunctional Sensor Systems

The latest progress (the year 2021-2024) on multifunctional sensors based on silicone rubber is reported. These multifunctional sensors are useful for real-time monitoring through relative resistance, relative current change, and relative capacitance types. The present review contains a brief overview and literature survey on the sensors and their multifunctionalities. This contains an introduction to the different functionalities of these sensors. Following the introduction, the survey on the types of filler or rubber and their fabrication are briefly described. The coming section deals with the fabrication methodology of these composites where the sensors are integrated. The special focus on mechanical and electro-mechanical properties is discussed. Electro-mechanical properties with a special focus on response time, linearity, and gauge factor are reported. The next section of this review reports the filler dispersion and its role in influencing the properties and applications of these sensors. Finally, various types of sensors are briefly reported. These sensors are useful for monitoring human body motions, breathing activity, environment or breathing humidity, organic gas sensing, and, finally, smart textiles. Ultimately, the study summarizes the key takeaway from this review article. These conclusions are focused on the merits and demerits of the sensors and are followed by their future prospects.

Kinetically controlled metal-elastomer nanophases for environmentally resilient stretchable electronics

Nanophase mixtures, leveraging the complementary strengths of each component, are vital for composites to overcome limitations posed by single elemental materials. Among these, metal-elastomer nanophases are particularly important, holding various practical applications for stretchable electronics. However, the methodology and understanding of nanophase mixing metals and elastomers are limited due to difficulties in blending caused by thermodynamic incompatibility. Here, we present a controlled method using kinetics to mix metal atoms with elastomeric chains on the nanoscale. We find that the chain migration flux and metal deposition rate are key factors, allowing the formation of reticular nanophases when kinetically in-phase. Moreover, we observe spontaneous structural evolution, resulting in gyrified structures akin to the human brain. The hybridized gyrified reticular nanophases exhibit strain-invariant metallic electrical conductivity up to 156% areal strain, unparalleled durability in organic solvents and aqueous environments with pH 2-13, and high mechanical robustness, a prerequisite for environmentally resilient devices.

Electrophysical Properties and Structure of Natural Disordered sp2 Carbon

The progress in the practical use of glassy carbon materials has led to a considerable interest in understanding the nature of their physical properties. The electrophysical properties are among the most demanded properties. However, obtaining such materials is associated with expensive and dirty processes. In nature, in the course of geological processes, disordered sp² carbon substances were formed, the structure of which is in many respects similar to the structure of glassy carbon and black carbon, and the electrical properties are distinguished by a high-energy storage potential and a high efficiency of shielding electromagnetic radiation. Given the huge natural reserves of such carbon (for example, in the shungite rocks of Karelia) and the relative cheapness and ease of producing materials from it, the study of potential technological applications and the disclosure of some unique electrophysical properties are of considerable interest. In this paper, we present an overview of recent studies on the structure, electrophysical properties, and technological applications of natural disordered sp² carbon with the addition of novel authors' results.

Tailoring Nylon 6/Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene Nanocomposites for Application against Electromagnetic Interference: Evaluation of the Mechanical, Thermal and Electrical Behavior, and the Electromagnetic Shielding Efficiency

Nylon 6/acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene nanocomposites were prepared by mixing in a molten state and injection molded for application in electromagnetic interference shielding and antistatic packaging. Multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and maleic anhydride-grafted ABS compatibilizer were incorporated to improve the electrical conductivity and mechanical performance. The nanocomposites were characterized by oscillatory rheology, Izod impact strength, tensile strength, thermogravimetry, current-voltage measurements, shielding against electromagnetic interference, and scanning electron microscopy. The rheological behavior evidenced a severe increase in complex viscosity and storage modulus, which suggests an electrical percolation phenomenon. Adding 1 to 5 phr MWCNT into the nanocomposites produced electrical conductivities between 1.22 × 10⁻⁶ S/cm and 6.61 × 10⁻⁵ S/cm. The results make them suitable for antistatic purposes. The nanocomposite with 5 phr MWCNT showed the highest electromagnetic shielding efficiency, with a peak of –10.5 dB at 9 GHz and a value around –8.2 dB between 11 and 12 GHz. This was possibly due to the higher electrical conductivity of the 5 phr MWCNT composition. In addition, the developed nanocomposites, regardless of MWCNT content, showed tenacious behavior at room temperature. The results reveal the possibility for tailoring the properties of insulating materials for application in electrical and electromagnetic shielding. Additionally, the good mechanical and thermal properties further widen the application range.

Controllable Triboelectric Series Using Gradient Positive and Negative Charge-Confinement Layer with Different Particle Sizes of Mesoporous Carbon Materials

As a method to maximize the energy efficiency of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs), high-voltage charge injection (HVCI) on the surface is a simple and effective method for increasing surface charge densities. In this study, positive and negative triboelectric series are controlled using a 3-layer gradient charge-confinement wherein the particle sizes of the mesoporous carbon spheres (mCSs) are sequentially arranged depending on the external surface area of the mCSs. In the gradient charge-confinement layers of this study, the mCS with different sizes perform charge transport from the surface to a deep position during HVCI while mitigating the charge loss through charge confinement to induce the high space charge densities. Through this process, the output voltage-which is initially 15.2 V-is measured to be 600 V after HVCI, thus representing an increase of about 40 times. Further, to amplify the low output current, which is a disadvantage of triboelectric energy, two types of electrical energy-triboelectric and electromagnetic energy-are produced in single mechanical motion. As a result, the output current produced by the cylindrical TENG and electromagnetic generator is recorded as being 1300 times higher, increasing from 12.8 µA to 17.5 mA.