Method of forming a surface-modified nanocomposite

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9976004-B2
Application number	US-201715659200-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 25, 2017
Priority date	Jun 2, 2014
Publication date	May 22, 2018
Grant date	May 22, 2018

Abstract

A method for forming a blend including graphene nanoparticles and a poly(styrene-co-methylmethacrylate), where the method includes melt mixing the poly(styrene-co-methylmethacrylate) and the graphene nanoparticles to obtain a nanocomposite and exposing the nanocomposite to microwave irradiation to bond the methyl methacrylate copolymer to the graphene nanoparticles, in which a content of the graphene nanoparticles is from 0.05 to 2 wt % based on the nanocomposites. A blend composition, including graphene nanoparticles and a poly(styrene-co-methylmethacrylate), where the graphene nanoparticles are dispersed in the poly(styrene-co-methylmethacrylate), the graphene nanoparticles are modified with microwave induced defects, and the free radicals of poly(styrene-co-methylmethacrylate) is bonded to the graphene nanoparticles at the defects.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for forming a surface-modified nanocomposite, wherein the surface-modified nanocomposite comprises surface modified graphene nanoparticles and a poly(styrene-co-methylmethacrylate), comprising:
melt blending the poly(styrene-co-methylmethacrylate) and the surface modified graphene nanoparticles for a time period of from 5 to 20 min to obtain a first nanocomposite; and
exposing the first nanocomposite to microwave irradiation to covalently bond the polystyrene-co-methylmethacrylate) to the surface modified graphene nanoparticles and form the surface-modified nanocomposite,
wherein a content of the surface modified graphene nanoparticles in the surface-modified nanocomposite is from 0.05 to 2 wt % based on a total weight of the surface-modified nanocomposite.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first nanocomposite is exposed to the microwave irradiation for 2 to 9 minutes.

3. The method of claim I, wherein the first nanocomposite is exposed to the microwave irradiation for 3 to 7 minutes.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first nanocomposite is exposed to the microwave irradiation for about 5 minutes.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the content of the surface modified graphene nanoparticles is from 0.1 to 1.5 wt % based on the total weight of the surface modified nanocomposite.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the content of the surface modified graphene nanoparticles is about 1 wt % based on the total weight of the surface modified nanocomposite.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising compression molding the first nanocomposite after the melt blending and before the exposing to microwave irradiation.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first nanocomposite is exposed to microwave irradiation at a frequency of from 2300 to 2600MHZ.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first nanocomposite is exposed to microwave irradiation at a fixed power of from 900 to 1100 watts.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the surface-modified nanocomposite has a storage modulus of from 800 to 1300 MPA at 120° C. and from 1400 to 1800 MPA at 40° C.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the surface-modified nanocomposite has an electrical conductivity of from 1×10 −3 to 2.0×10 −3 S/cm.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the surface modified graphene nanoparticles are completely exfoliated in the poly(styrene-co-methylmethacrylate) after the first nanocomposite is exposed to the microwave irradiation.

Assignees

• Univ King Fahd Pet & Minerals

Inventors

• Al-Harthi Mamdouh Ahmed
• Zubair Mukarram

Classifications

• C09C1/44

  Carbon · CPC title

• C08J3/28 Primary

  Treatment by wave energy or particle radiation · CPC title

• B29K2025/08

  Copolymers of styrene, e.g. AS or SAN, i.e. acrylonitrile styrene (B29K2055/02 takes precedence) · CPC title

• C08J2325/14

  with unsaturated esters · CPC title

• B29C43/003

  characterised by the choice of material · CPC title