Graphene Nanocomposites with High Molecular Weight Poly(ε-Caprolactone) Grafts: Controlled Synthesis, and Accelerated Crystallization

Published

March 15, 2016

Author(s)

Titash Mondal, Rana N. Ashkar, Paul Butler, Anil K. Bhowmick, Ramanan Krishnamoorti

Abstract

Grafting of high molecular weight polymers to graphitic nanoplatelets is a critical step toward the development of high performance graphene nanocomposites. However, designing such a grafting route has remained a major impediment. Herein, we report a ¿grafting to¿ synthetic pathway by which high molecular weight polymer, poly (ε-caprolactone) (PCL), is tethered, at high grafting density, to highly anisotropic graphitic nanoplatelets. The efficacy of this tethering route and the resultant structural arrangements within the composite are confirmed by neutron and x-ray scattering measurements in the melt and solution phase. In the semi-crystalline state, X-ray analysis indicates that chain tethering onto the graphitic nanoplaletes results in conformational changes of the polymer chains that enhance the nucleation process and aid superstructure formation of PCL-crystallites. This is further corroborated by the superior thermal properties of the composite, manifested in remarkably accelerated crystallization kinetics and a significant increase in the thermal degradation temperature. In principle, this synthesis route can be extended to a variety of high molecular weight polymers, which would open wide avenues to solution-based processing of graphitic nanomaterials and the fabrication of complex 3D patterned graphitic nanocomposites.

Citation

Journal of the American Chemical Society

Volume

5

Issue

3

Pub Type

Journals

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Keywords

Graphene, polymer nanocompostite, dispersion, carbon composite

Citation

Mondal, T. , Ashkar, R. , Butler, P. , Bhowmick, A. and Krishnamoorti, R. (2016), Graphene Nanocomposites with High Molecular Weight Poly(ε-Caprolactone) Grafts: Controlled Synthesis, and Accelerated Crystallization, Journal of the American Chemical Society, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=919895 (Accessed October 10, 2025)