PET/PP Blend with Bamboo Charcoal to Produce Functional Composites: Evaluation of Functionalities

Abstract

Poly(ethylene terephthalate)/polypropylene/bamboo charcoal (PET/PP/BC) thermoplastic composites were prepared by melt compounding and then injection molding. The functionalities of the composites, such as electrical resistivity, electromagnetic shielding effectiveness (EMSE), far-infrared ray radiativity (FIRR) and negative ion concentration, were evaluated in the study. The surface resistivity and volume resistivity of the functional composites were 2.47 - 9.12×1011 Ω/sq and 5.8 - 7.01×1010 Ωcm, respectively, while composites containing 6 wt% BC or above. The EMSE of the composites were below 10 dB at frequency ranged from 300 kHz to3 GHz. The average FIRR of the composites was 0.85 at BC concentration of 8 wt%. Incorporation of BC into the composites increased the negative ion concentration of about 30 pcs/cc compared to those without BC. However, it is lower than the positive ion concentration in the air.