Simultaneous enhancement of mechanical performance and thermal conductivity for polyamide 10T by nanodiamond compositing

Abstract In high‐frequency devices and thermal management areas, there is an urgent demand for polyamide with high‐mechanical strength and high‐thermal conductivity simultaneously. In this study, semiaromatic polyamide 10T/nanodiamond (ND) nanocomposites were prepared via predispersion and in situ polymerization, which was conducive to achieve the homogeneous distribution of ND in the PA10T matrix. The tensile strength and impact strength of the PA10T/1.0 wt% ND nanocomposite increased by 27% and 102%, respectively. With the content of only 1.0 wt% of ND, the thermal conductivity of the nanocomposite increased from 0.36 to 0.51 W/(m·K). In addition, the thermomechanical properties and thermal stability of nanocomposites were also been improved. We attributed the composite reinforcing effect to not only the uniform dispersion of ND in the matrix and strong interfacial interactions between ND and PA10T molecules, but also the formation of ND‐centered cross‐linking structures in the composites. Thus, ND compositing is a promising way to enhance both the mechanical properties and thermal conductivity of polyamide.