title: Films, Buckypapers and Fibers from Clay, Chitosan and Carbon Nanotubes.
abstract: The mechanical and electrical characteristics of films, buckypapers and fiber materials from combinations of clay, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and chitosan are described. The rheological time-dependent characteristics of clay are maintained in clay-carbon nanotube-chitosan composite dispersions. It is demonstrated that the addition of chitosan improves their mechanical characteristics, but decreases electrical conductivity by three-orders of magnitude compared to clay-CNT materials. We show that the electrical response upon exposure to humid atmosphere is influenced by clay-chitosan interactions, i.e., the resistance of clay-CNT materials decreases, whereas that of clay-CNT-chitosan increases.
authors.affiliation: Soft Materials Group, School of Chemistry, University of Wollongong, Northfields Avenue, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia. thiggins@uow.edu.au.
authors.forename: Thomas M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Higgins
authors.affiliation: Soft Materials Group, School of Chemistry, University of Wollongong, Northfields Avenue, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia. hw982@uowmail.edu.au.
authors.forename: Holly
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Warren
authors.affiliation: Soft Materials Group, School of Chemistry, University of Wollongong, Northfields Avenue, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia. panhuis@uow.edu.au.
authors.forename: Marc In Het
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Panhuis
keywords: carbon nanotubes; chitosan; clay; electrical; mechanical