Microwave interactive properties of cotton fabrics coated with carbon nanotubes/polyurethane composite

In the present study, the inherent characteristic of carbon nanotubes to absorb/attenuate the energy of electromagnetic waves has been exploited. The results indicate that the incorporation of CNTs in the polyurethane matrix has significant effect on the microwave interaction properties. Fabrics are developed through coating process using formulations based on different concentrations of multi –walled carbon nanotubes in polyurethane matrix on two different types of fabrics, i.e. plain weave fabric & mesh fabric (netting). The coated fabrics have been evaluated for microwave interaction properties in X and Ku –band in terms of four parameters, viz. reflection, transmission , absorption, reflection loss, permittivity and surface resistivity of materials. The absorption of upto 40%, permittivity value of 25.0 in frequency range 8.2-12.4 GHz (XBand) and reflection loss of 5-10 dB in frequency range of 2-18 GHz (X and Ku band) have been observed.