Drying of polyacrylamide-multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWNT) composites with various MWNTs contents: a fluorescence study

Abstract

We studied the drying of polyacrylamide (PAAm)-multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWNT) composites prepared by free radical crosslinking copolymerization in water with a steady state fluorescence technique. Composite gels were prepared at room temperature with pyranine (Py) doped as a fluorescence probe. Drying experiments were performed in air at various MWNT contents by real time monitoring of the Py fluorescence intensity (I) which increased as the drying proceeded. The Stern-Volmer equation combined with the moving boundary diffusion model was used to explain the behavior of I during drying. It was observed that the desorption coefficient (D) increased as the temperature increased. Drying energies (Delta E) were measured for the drying processes for each MWNT content gel by using fluorescence gravimetrical and volumetric methods. It is understood that Delta E values decrease by increasing MWNT content until 1 wt % MWNT and then increase above the level of this threshold value. The energy of drying is strongly correlated with the MWNT content in the composite. Delta E drops to its lowest value at which conducting cluster starts to appear.