Mechanical Properties of CNT/Polymer

Abstract

The high mechanical properties, the stiffness-to-weight, and strength-to-weight make the carbon nanotubes a perfect reinforcing agents in advanced composites. This interesting potential has attracted the attention of both industry and academia that have committed to this research field an impressive amount of work. Several applications of carbon nanotubes enriched polymer composites have already been seen: aerospace structures, sporting goods, automotive components, medical devices, optical barriers, photovoltaic devices, conducting plastics, electromagnetic interference shielding, efficient electrostatic painting of plastics, composite mirrors, plastics with high thermal dissipation, biomaterial devices, strain sensors, damage sensing, gas sensors, optoelectronics, transparent electronics and electromechanical actuation. This chapter focuses on the mechanical properties of CNTs reinforced composites made with several different polymer matrixes. Since the mechanical properties of the matrix material strongly affect the resulting macroscopic mechanical behavior of the composite, the state of the art has been grouped together in subchapters according to the different polymers.