Enhancement of electrical conductivity of composite structures by integration of carbon nanotubes via bulk resin and/or buckypaper films

This study describes two approaches for the incorporation of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites, through the addition of the CNTs in the bulk resin and by the addition of CNT-based buckypaper (BP) in the CFRP structure. Several laminates were successfully manufactured integrating these two approaches, where a significant improvement of the electrical conductivity (EC) values was found. Additionally, in order to compare different surface preparations and testing methods, a cross check of EC test was carried out among different laboratories. This characterization was complemented with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses, results of which were used to rule out a complete filtering effect of the CNTs. Furthermore, interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) tests were also performed, with the aim of assessing the mechanical behavior of the different configurations.We gratefully acknowledge the financial support from FP-7 EU project ELECTRICAL: Novel Aeronautical Multifunctional Composite Structures with Bulk Electrical Conductivity and Self-Sensing Capabilities (ACP8-GA-2010-265593), especially project partners CYTEC and ARKEMA for the material supply and technical support