The Characterization of Nanocomposites from Poly(lactic acid) with Nanocarbon Black as the Reinforcement

Carbon black and Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) were melting blended to prepare conductive nanocomposites, and melamine was used as the compatibilizer. The effects of nanocarbon black (CB) content on mechanical properties, hydrophobicity, electrical crystalline and morphology of PLA/CB nanocomposites were investigated. The results presented that the tensile properties and hydrophobicity of PLA/CB nanocomposites improved simultaneously by adding appropriate amount of CB, but the mechanical properties of PLA/CB nanocomposites decreased by adding too much CB. The conductivity test results showed that there was no significant change after CB content exceeded 12%. This is due to the CB aggregation. XRD results showed that the main crystallization peak of CB increased with the increase of its content, and the addition of CB did not affect the crystal form of PLA.