SBIR Phase II: Incorporation of Carbon Nanotubes into Nylon Filaments

这个小型企业创新研究第二阶段项目将继续开发一种将单壁碳纳米管(SWNT)结合到尼龙中作为增强材料的方法。它们的结合将通过用官能化聚合物包裹单壁碳纳米管来实现，该聚合物以机械方式与单壁碳纳米管相互作用，但不以化学方式与它们结合。聚合物将以化学方式结合到尼龙上，并以这种方式在尼龙基质和最终复合材料中的纳米管之间充当负载传递管道。聚合物将碳纳米管非凡的强度和耐用性传递到尼龙复合材料上的效果如何，将取决于单壁碳纳米管和尼龙基质之间的这种新界面的功能有多好。对于尼龙纤维，单壁碳纳米管沿纤维长丝的长轴排列的可能性程度将对纤维的导热和导电性以及强度产生影响。本工作的主要目的是优化单壁碳纳米管/尼龙复合材料的相互作用，以获得最佳的载荷传递性能。这种高强度尼龙复合材料将在航空航天工业中有重要的应用，用于制造轻质、可回收、卫星运载火箭、可重复使用的航天器等。军方也将对这项技术感兴趣，因为它结合了极高的强度、轻量化和隐身能力。这项技术的成功开发将产生新的轻质热塑性复合材料，这种复合材料具有极高的弯曲、拉伸和冲击强度，并且可以很容易地模塑成所需的任何形状。这项新技术最终将适用于许多其他材料。此外，由于这些复合材料是热塑性塑料，而不是热固性塑料，它们将更容易回收。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II project will continue developing a method for incorporating Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWNT) into nylon to act as reinforcement. Their incorporation will be achieved by wrapping the SWNTs with a functionalized polymer that interacts with the SWNTs mechanically, but is not chemically bound to them. The polymer will be chemically bound to the nylon and in this way will act as a load transferring conduit between the nylon matrix and nanotubes in the final composite. How well the polymer transfers the extraordinary strength and durability of the carbon nanotubes to the nylon composite will depend on how well this new interface, between the SWNT and the nylon matrix, functions. For nylon fibers, the degree to which it is possible to align the SWNTs along the major axis of the fiber filaments will play a role in the fiber's thermal and electrical conductivity as well as strength. The primary focus of this work is to optimize the SWNT/nylon matrix interaction in order to obtain the best load transfer properties. Methods to align the SWNTs along the long axis of the nylon filaments in order to maximize fiber strength will also be investigated.Commercially, this high strength nylon composite will have significant applications in the aerospace industry for use in fabricating lightweight, retrievable, satellite launch vehicles, reusable space craft etc. The military will also be interested in this technology because of the combination of exceptionally high strength, lightweight and stealth capability. The successful development of this technology will result in new lightweight thermoplastic composites that have extraordinarily high flexural, tensile and impact strengths and can be easily molded into any shape desired. This new technology will eventually be applicable to many other materials. Additionally, since these composites are thermoplastics and not a thermosets, they will be more easily recycled.