Numerical Simulations of the Effect of Microstructure on AC Conductivity of MWCNT/Polymer Nanocomposites
Abstract
Abstract A continuum model is developed to investigate the microstructure‐dependent AC properties of MWCNT/polymer nanocomposites. The AC conductivity of the composite is increased by a higher curl ratio of MWCNTs. At a critical frequency ω 0 , the AC conductivity switches to a frequency‐dependent region. For high MWCNT content, the curl curliness of MWCNTs has only a weak influence on the AC conductivity. For medium MWCNT content, the AC conductivity became frequency‐dependent for low frequencies with decreasing curl ratio of MWCNTs, which cannot be explained by correlation length theory. An interpretation based on the linear circuit theory is given. With increasing size of MWCNT clusters, the critical frequency ω 0 increases. It is also affected significantly by the crystallinity the polymer. magnified image