Polyamide 12 modified with nanoparticles: Effect on impact behaviour and on the electrical conductivity of carbon fibre-reinforced epoxy composites

Modifying the impact toughness of carbon composite by means of introducing thermoplastic inserts in the interlaminar layer is state of the art. However, these inlayers reduce the electrical conductivity through the thickness of the composite. Because the combination of good electrical conductivity and high fracture toughness is desirable, a detailed investigation was carried out into additive-enhanced polyamide 12 compound. The modification consisted in compounding graphite, graphene and carbon nanotubes with polyamide 12 in various proportions. After it was introduced into the interlaminar layer, the samples' electrical conductivity was measured and their mechanical properties assessed. Afterwards, these results were compared with various inserts made with unmodified polyamide 12. It turned out that the coarse-mesh laid scrim showed only a slight fall in conductivity. Furthermore, it provided promising results regarding the increase of the interlaminar toughness. Thus, the expensive modification of polyamide 12 can be avoided by using discrete laid scrim.