Enhanced Microwave Absorption Properties of Manganese Dioxide/Carbon Fiber Hybrid with Polyaniline in the X Band

Uniform PANI/MnO2/CF hybrids with superior microwave absorption properties were rapidly fabricated via a two-step reaction involving the hydrothermal method and in situ polymerization. The morphology and structure of the samples were investigated via scanning electron microscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, x-ray powder diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The nano-size MnO2 particles grown on the surface of the carbon fiber and the MnO2/CF were found to be uniformly coated with PANI. Based on TG analysis, the thermal stability of PANI/CF and PANI/MnO2/CF was superior to that of PANI. According to the results of vector network analysis, the microwave-absorbing capacity of PANI/MnO2/CF was greater than that of PANI and PANI/CF, and its minimum loss value reached − 22 dB at 10.2 GHz. When the frequency was between 8.7 GHz and 11.7 GHz, the RL values of the hybrid were less than − 10 dB, which implies that its effective absorption bandwidth is 3.0 GHz in the X band.