Effect of pretreatment with ultrasonic vibration for plasma-processed multiwalled carbon nanotubes

This article reports the effect of pretreatment with ultrasonic vibration before a plasma treatment onto multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The pretreatment is supposed to loosen bundled CNTs, enlarging the area to expose the plasma and then increasing the functionalization ratio. Next, the authors conducted a series of experiments to confirm the effect of the pretreatment. The experiment showed that the CNTs with pretreatment have more functionalization ratio of isocyanate (NCO) groups than the CNTs without pretreatment. In the condition of the processes in this article, the ratio had doubled due to the pretreatment. The authors also confirmed the effect of the pretreatment with the wear-resistance exam of polyurethane composite films with the plasma-processed CNTs. Finally, this article concluded that the pretreatment with sonication is effective in plasma functionalization to maximize the functionalization ratio of CNTs.