title: Microwave-synthesized freestanding iron-carbon nanotubes on polyester composites of woven Kevlar fibre and silver nanoparticle-decorated graphene.
abstract: We synthesized Ag nanoparticle-decorated multilayered graphene nanosheets (Ag-graphene) from graphite nanoplatelets and silver nitrate through 90-100 s of microwave exposure, without the use of any mineral acids or harsh reducing agents. Fe nanoparticle-decorated carbon nanotubes (Fe-CNTs) were grown on polypyrrole (PPy) deposited on woven Kevlar fibre (WKF), using ferrocene as a catalyst, under microwave irradiation. Fe-CNTs grown on WKF and Ag-graphene dispersed in polyester resin (PES) were combined to fabricate Ag-graphene/Fe-CNT/PPy-coated WKF/PES composites by vacuum-assisted resin transfer moulding. The combined effect of Fe-CNTs and Ag-graphene in the resulting composites resulted in a remarkable enhancement of tensile properties (a 192.56% increase in strength and 100.64% increase in modulus) as well as impact resistance (a 116.33% increase). The electrical conductivity significantly increased for Ag-graphene/Fe-CNT/PPy-coated WKF/PES composites. The effectiveness of electromagnetic interference shielding, which relies strongly on the Ag-graphene content in the composites, was 25 times higher in Ag-graphene/Fe-CNT/PPy-coated WKF/PES than in neat WKF/PES composites. The current work offers a novel route for fabricating highly promising, cost effective WKF/PES composites through microwave-assisted synthesis of Fe-CNTs and Ag-graphene.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea.
authors.forename: Ankita
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hazarika
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea.
authors.forename: Biplab K
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Deka
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea.
authors.forename: DoYoung
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea.
authors.forename: Kyungil
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kong
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea.
authors.forename: Young-Bin
authors.initials: YB
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan 44919, Korea.
authors.forename: Hyung Wook
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Park