Construction of flexible carbon nanotube film/PA66 composite with high dynamic mechanical properties

Carbon nanotube (CNT) has potential application in many fields owing to its excellent properties, but the weak Van der Waals forces between randomly arranged tube bundles limit their mechanical properties. In this paper, CNT films were prepared by floating catalyst chemical vapor deposition (FCCVD), whereas PA66 resin was introduced via impregnation and hot press curing in order to further improve the mechanical tensile properties and environmental resistance of the films. The results demonstrate that the tensile properties of PA66-impregnated CNT film are significantly improved. When the mass fraction of PA66 is 1 %, the composite film exhibits the best tensile properties under quasi-static conditions, with a tensile strength of 528 MPa and an energy absorption (EA) value of 109.5 MJ/m 3 . Plus, at the high strain rate of 2900 s −1 , the strength and EA of CNT film/PA66 composite can reach 534 MPa and 107 MJ/m 3 , respectively. The results in present research can provide a feasible and effective strategy for the design of CNT composite film with high mechanical tolerance which will broaden the application field to a large extent.