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Poly(methyl methacrylate)‐Assisted Exfoliation of Graphite and Its Use in Acrylonitrile‐Butadiene‐Styrene Composites
Author(s) -
Gentiluomo Silvia,
Thorat Sanjay B.,
Del Río Castillo Antonio Esau,
Toth Peter S.,
Panda Jaya Kumar,
Pellegrini Vittorio,
Bonaccorso Francesco
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
chemistry – a european journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.687
H-Index - 242
eISSN - 1521-3765
pISSN - 0947-6539
DOI - 10.1002/chem.202000547
Subject(s) - graphene , materials science , exfoliation joint , composite material , acrylonitrile butadiene styrene , graphite , acetone , methyl methacrylate , polymer , methacrylate , boiling point , poly(methyl methacrylate) , chemical engineering , nanotechnology , polymerization , organic chemistry , chemistry , engineering
One of the applications of graphene in which its scalable production is of utmost importance is the development of polymer composites. Among the techniques used to produce graphene flakes, the liquid‐phase exfoliation (LPE) of graphite stands out due to its versatility and scalability. However, solvents suitable for the LPE process are generally toxic and have a high boiling point, making the processing challenging. The use of low boiling point solvents could be convenient for the processing, due to the easiness of their removal. In this study, the use of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as a stabilizing agent is proposed for the production of graphene flakes in a low boiling point solvent, that is, acetone. The graphene dispersions produced in the mixture acetone‐PMMA have higher concentration, +175 %, and contain a higher percentage of few‐layer graphene flakes (<5 layers), that is, +60 %, compared to the dispersions prepared in acetone. The as‐produced graphene dispersions are used to develop graphene/acrylonitrile‐butadiene‐styrene composites. The mechanical properties of the pristine polymer are improved, that is, +22 % in the Young's modulus, by adding 0.01 wt. % of graphene flakes. Moreover, a decrease of ≈20 % in the oxygen permeability is obtained by using 0.1 wt. % of graphene flakes filler, compared to the unloaded matrix.