Effect of Reprocessing on the Rheological, Electrical, and Mechanical Properties of Polypropylene/Carbon Nanotube Composites

Abstract

In this paper, polypropylene (PP) filled with different levels of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) manufactured by injection molding was closed-loop recycled in order to investigate the effect of recycling and reprocessing on its rheological, electrical, and mechanical properties. It was found that the PP/MWCNT composites keep the flow performance after mechanical recycling. Moreover, the stress and strain at break increase after one reprocessing cycle (mechanical recycling and injection molding), whereas no statistically significant changes in electrical conductivity, Young's modulus, and tensile strength of the PP/MWCNT composites filled with 1, 3, and 5 wt.% were observed.