Authors: Brandon Clark, Hayden Allen, Zixuan Wang, Rajagopalan Thiruvengadathan
Mentors: Rajagopalan Thiruvengadathan
Insitution: Southern Utah University
Percolation behavior of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in polymer matrix is studied quantitatively and qualitatively through computational simulation. A resistor network recognition technique based on ant colony optimization (ACO) was employed to estimate the electrical conductivity of SWCNT/polymer composites. The contributions of quantum tunnelling and direct contact resistance of SWCNTs were considered in the algorithm developed and reported in this work. Effects of dispersion efficiency vis-à-vis presence of aggregates, intrinsic conductivity (metallic vs. semiconducting), acid functionalization of SWCNTs on the electrical conductivity and formation of conducting networks in polymer matrix were investigated.