A Novel Ternary Composite of Polyurethane/Polyaniline/Nanosilica with Antistatic Property and Excellent Mechanical Strength: Preparation and Mechanism

Antistatic and strength properties are of vital importance for polyurethane rubber used in moving parts of many industrial instruments. Herein, polyurethane was composited with polyaniline and nanosilica based on in situ synthesis of polymer and physical mixing of these fillers to reach desired antistatic and mechanical properties. Chemical, morphological and thermal properties of the polyurethane/polyaniline/nanosilica composites were studied. The electrical resistivity of the composite decreased from 1.1×106 MΩ to 7.6×104 MΩ as a result of the addition of 4% polyaniline. The tensile strength and elongation at break of the polyurethane composites improved by nearly 300% and 100%, respectively, when compared with those of the neat polyurethane. The electronic resistance of PU/PANI/NS ternary is low enough for its antistatic property and decreases with the increase of the added nanosilica, which is unexpectedly and rather significant. Our results would shed light on the development of antistatic PU with excellent mechanical performance.