High electrical conductive polymethylmethacrylate/graphite composites obtained via a novel pickering emulsion route

In this work, high electrically conductive Polymethylmethacrylate/graphite (PMMA/G) composites with a specific core-shell structure were synthesized via Pickering emulsion (solid-stabilized emulsion) route. The electrical conductivity of the core-shell composites was measured by a four-point probe resistivity determiner and a very high value of 9.8?×?10^?3 S/cm (10¹³ times higher than virgin PMMA) was obtained at 30 wt% graphite. However, the electrical conductivity of the PMMA/G composites gained through traditional blend process was relatively lower and the value only reached 9.4?×?10^?9 S/cm at same graphite loading fraction. Contact angle measurement was applied to determine the surface free energy of the modified graphite which was cladded by Al(OH)₃. The morphology of the core-shell composites was observed by SEM and optical microscopy. Dynamic rheology analysis was employed to study the structural change by the interconnection of the graphite flakes and the formation of the networks in the composites. The interconnected networks of the core-shell composites were more easily constructed when compared with the composites obtained by the traditional blending process.