Preparation of high-strength and super antistatic PET composites with designed dual conductive network

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is widely used in industries of electronics, packaging, and textiles as a typical thermoplastic material. However, the intrinsically poor antistatic performance and limited mechanical strength of PET significantly restrict its extensive applications in cutting-edge fields. In this work, we design and prepare a modified PET composite materials through in-situ polymerization, composed of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), ionic liquid (1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, IL) and PET. Detailed characterizations reveal that the introduction of IL significantly promotes the uniform dispersion of MWCNTs within the PET matrix, thereby facilitating the formation of a robust three-dimensional dual-network (DN) architecture. The structural innovation confers remarkable antistatic performance and enhanced mechanical robustness. Notably, a substantial reduction in R_v (from 1.78 × 10¹⁴ Ω cm to 3.65 × 10⁶ Ω cm) is achieved. Additionally, by carefully optimizing the IL content, the negative impact of MWCNT on PET's processability, particularly its fluidity, was effectively minimized. This research provides a novel approach for the fabrication of high-performance, easily processable PET-based composites, with promising applications in electronic component packaging, medical device casings, high-performance spinning, etc.