Electro-active shape memory composites enhanced by flexible carbon nanotube/graphene aerogels

Abstract

In this manuscript we present a novel, shape memory aerogel/epoxy composite structure composed of a reduced carbon nanotube and graphene compound aerogel as a scaffold and epoxy resin as a matrix. The composite was prepared via a vacuum infusion method and to the best of our knowledge it represents the first instance of a shape memory effect directly driven by an electrical field observable in polymer-infused conductive carbon scaffolds. Furthermore, the composite material obtained displays a high conductivity (i.e., up to 5.2 S m⁻¹). In the manuscript it is shown that the composite's high conductivity can be attributed to the built-in 3D network of the thermally reduced graphene and carbon nanotube compound aerogel which displays high conductivity (16 S m⁻¹) coupled with low density (6 mg mL⁻¹). The composite material presented in this work is likely a suitable candidate for applications requiring polymer-infused conductive aerogels such as electromagnetic shielding, actuators and thermal sensors.