Stretchable conductive polyurethane elastomer in situ polymerized with multi-walled carbon nanotubes
writer：Dong Wang,* Haiying Li, Mufang Li, Haiqing Jiang, Ming Xia and Zhou Zhou
keywords：Stretchable conductive polyurethane elastomer
source：期刊
Issue time：2013年
The development of the wearable sensors for healthcare related applications requires mechanically
stretchable, electrically conductive and biologically compatible elastomers. We have fabricated a
conductive polyurethane (PU) elastomer by in situ polymerization with surface hydroxyl-modified Multi-
Walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWNTs). The FT-IR and Raman spectroscopy results indicated that the
successful incorporation of the MWNTs into PU macromolecules. The good dispersion of MWNTs in
PU/MWNT elastomers was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Raman
spectroscopy. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) suggested improved thermal stability of the in situ
polymerized PU/MWNT elastomers. The in situ polymerization with MWNTs led to a significant increase
in the conductivity of PU/MWNT elastomers. The stretching facilitated the orientation of the MWNTs
and further enhanced the conductivity of PU/MWNT elastomers. The in situ polymerized PU/MWNT
elastomers were employed as electrodes to construct a pressure sensor demonstrating good sensitivity
and consistency.