Open AccessThe Influence of Reaction Time on Non-Covalent Functionalisation of P3HT/MWCNT Nanocomposites
Author(s) -
N. Mohd Nurazzi,
Norli Abdullah,
Siti Zulaikha Ngah Demon,
Norhana Abdul Halim,
Imran Syakir Mohamad
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
polymers
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.77
H-Index - 73
ISSN - 2073-4360
DOI - 10.3390/polym13121916
Subject(s) - materials science , thermogravimetric analysis , x ray photoelectron spectroscopy , nanocomposite , raman spectroscopy , high resolution transmission electron microscopy , carbon nanotube , polymer , transmission electron microscopy , chemical engineering , scanning electron microscope , covalent bond , nanotechnology , polymer nanocomposite , composite material , organic chemistry , chemistry , optics , physics , engineering
Non-covalent functionalisation of the carbon nanotube (CNT) sidewall through polymer wrapping is the key strategy for improving well-dispersed CNTs without persistent alteration of their electronic properties. In this work, the effect of reaction time on regioregular poly (3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT)-wrapped hydroxylated multi-walled CNT (MWCNT-OH) nanocomposites was investigated. Five different reaction times (24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 h) were conducted at room temperature in order to clearly determine the factors that influenced the quality of wrapped MWCNT-OH. Morphological analysis using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopic (FESEM) and High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscope (HRTEM) analysis showed that P3HT successfully wrapped the MWCNT-OH sidewall, evidenced by the changes in the mean diameter size of the nanocomposites. Results obtained from Raman spectroscopy, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) as well as Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) showed a significant effect of the wrapped polymer on the CNT sidewall as the reaction time increased. Overall, the method used during the preparation of P3HT-wrapped MWCNT-OH and the presented results significantly provided a bottom-up approach to determine the effect of different reaction times on polymer wrapping to further expand this material for novel applications, especially chemical sensors.