Abstract In this study, we investigated the radical scavenging efficiencies of silane-grafted carbon nanotubes (CNTs) for hydroxyl (OH.) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals, using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and UV–Vis spectrophotometry, respectively. We used thermogravimetric analysis, Raman spectrometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy to characterize the silane-grafted CNTs. The EPR, UV–Vis, and Raman spectroscopic data revealed that the radical scavenging efficiencies of the silane-grafted CNTs increased upon increasing the degree of damage to the CNT structures following the grafting reactions, but decreased upon increasing the degree of the silane grafting, due to the steric bulk of the silane grafts on the surfaces of the CNTs. We used differential scanning calorimetry to examine the effects of the silane-grafted CNTs on the exothermic peaks of the free radical–initiated crosslinking reactions of vinyl ester/styrene resins. The silane-grafted CNTs retarded the crosslinking reactions to various extents: a higher degree of grafting resulted in a lower radical scavenging efficiency, leading to a lower degree of crosslinking retardation of the vinyl ester/styrene resins. Keywords: Carbon nanotubes, radical scavenger, silane grafting reactions, vinyl ester resins, crosslinking reactions

Radical scavenging efficiencies of silane-grafted carbon nanotubes and their effects on crosslinking reactions of vinyl ester/styrene resins

251st National Meeting (2016)

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