Surface Modification of Staple Carbon Fiber by Dopamine to Reinforce Natural Latex Composite

Carbon fiber significantly enhances the mechanical, thermal and electrical properties of rubber composites, which are widely used in aerospace, military, national defense and other cutting-edge fields. The preparation of a high-performance carbon fiber rubber composite has been a research hotspot, because the surface of carbon fiber is smooth, reactive inert and has a poor adhesion with rubber. In this paper, a high-performance rubber composite is prepared by mixing dopamine-modified staple carbon fiber with natural latex, and the mechanisms of modified carbon fiber-reinforced natural latex composite are explored. The experimental results show that the surface-modified staple carbon fiber forms uniform and widely covered polydopamine coatings, which significantly improve the interface adhesion between the carbon fiber and the rubber matrix. Meanwhile, when the concentration of dopamine is 1.5 g/L and the staple carbon fiber is modified for 6h, the carbon fiber rubber composite shows excellent conductivity, thermal conductivity, and dynamic mechanical properties, and its tensile strength is 10.6% higher than that of the unmodified sample.