Investigation on the Influence of Solvents on MWCNT-PDMS Nanocomposite Pressure Sensitive Films

Nanocomposites based on Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNT)—Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) polymer achieve pressure sensors sensitive even at very low pressure less than 5 N. For film homogeneity and sensitivity, fabrication procedure and especially the dispersion quality are decisive. Because of high viscosity of PDMS, a solvent is necessary. Solvents exhibit themselves different dispersion quality and in turn different piezoresistive response of the films under pressure. In this paper, the influence of solvents in fabricating the nanocomposite is investigated considering dispersion quality and stability. The best dispersion stability was achieved with isopropanol and the nanocomposite show better results considering sensitivity and hysteresis behavior under pressure.