preparation of high performance pp/ reduced graphene oxide nanocomposites through a combined in situ polymerization and masterbatch method

despite the great potential of graphene as a nanofiller, achieving homogeneous dispersion remains the key challenge for effectively reinforcing polyolefin (such as polyethylene (pe) and polypropylene (pp)) nanocomposites. therefore, in this research, we report a facile combined in situ polymerization and masterbatch method for fabricating pp/reduced graphene oxide (rgo) nanocomposites. in the polymerization stage, the synthesized catalyst exhibited a very high activity toward propylene polymerization, while the resultant pp/rgo with a very high isotactic index (i.i. = 99.3), broad molecular weight distribution (mw/mn = 14.9), and thermal stability was produced. after meltblending with commercial pp, a significantly increased modulus along with no observable change in tensile strength and elongation-at-break were achieved via the addition of a very small amount of rgo; these properties resulted from the suitable dispersion and good interface adhesion of the graphene sheet and pp matrix. thus, this work provides a method for production of high performance pp.