Electrical conductivity of commercial graphene polyethylene nanocomposites

Commercial graphene offers a much lower cost route to the production of high aspect-ratio nanoplatelet fillers than fully-exfoliated, research-grade or laboratory-made graphene sheets. We prepared polyethylene nanocomposites based on commercial graphene nanoplatelets using a commercial twin-screw extruder. Compression molded specimens were made for electrical conductivity measurement using various electrode configurations and techniques. The results highlight the importance of the electrical conductivity measurement method in the interpretation of the nanocomposites electrical properties. It was observed that in some cases the measured conductivity values can differ by about four orders of magnitude for reasons related to the measurement method and sample preparation technique. The effect of polyethylene grade and modifying additives on the electrical conductivity of the commercial graphene-polyethylene nanocomposites were also studied. The flexural strength and modulus of the nanocomposites were measured to facilitate material selection for industrial applications.