Synthesis and characterization of acrylic resin/activated carbon composites

Abstract

Activated Charcoal (AC) filled acrylic resin (AR) based composites have been prepared by solution processing technique. Different compositions were formulated by variation of AC content between 1 to 30 wt % and the formed composites have been characterized by various techniques to establish a correlation between the filler concentration and the structural, thermal, electrical and morphological attributes. The FTIR spectra show the presence of AC in AR matrix whereas XRD patterns confirm the incorporation of AC particles between lamellar structures of AR. The TGA investigation revealed that composites are thermally stable up to 200°C after which they display multistep weight loss due to removal of functional groups and decomposition/carbonization of AC as well as polymeric backbone of AR. The SEM images show that incorporation of AC particles leads to systematic change in the morphology of composites. The electrical measurements show that 30 wt % AC loading composite displays much lower resistivity (10⁴ Ω/Sq) as compared to pure AR (10¹¹ Ω/Sq) and suggest its suitability as static dissipative material. Further, the porous structure and electrically conducting nature of the composites suggest their suitability for making electromagnetic interference shielding coatings.