On nano polypyrrole and carbon nano tube reinforced PVDF for 3D printing applications: Rheological,thermal,electrical,mechanical,morphological characterization

Abstract

The nano polypyrrole (PPy) and carbon nano tubes (CNT) are known for their excellent charge carrying capacities, thermal stability, conductivity and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) for their inherent piezoelectricity and biocompatibility. The mechanical blending of these materials to form a feedstock filament can be an excellent input for the 3D printing of customized sensors for biomedical applications. But hitherto little has been reported on rheological, thermal, electrical, mechanical and morphological properties of PPy/CNT reinforced PVDF especially for 3D printing of customized sensors. In this study, the twin screw compounding has been used to prepare feedstock filaments of PVDF, PVDF-2.5%CNT, PVDF-2.5%PPy and PVDF-2.5% (CNT + PPy) to explore feasibility of sensor 3D printing for biomedical applications. Further, the feedstock filaments were subjected to thermal, mechanical, morphological investigations. The results of study show that addition of PPy and CNT in PVDF matrix has improved the specific heat capacity, elongation and charge capacity significantly.