Effect of Nanotubes on the Electrical and Mechanical Properties of Chitosan Films

Using the methods of X-ray diffraction and scanning electronmicroscopy, the structure of composite films based on chitosan andsingle-wall carbon tubes has been studied. It is shown that theintroduction of carbon nanotubes leads to the ordering of the chitosanstructure. Increase in concentration of nanotubes (from 0 to 3%) causesrise in the value of storage modulus from 3 to 4 GPa (DMA data), increase inelectrical conductivity of samples (from 10-11 to 102 S/m), and some changesin their dielectric permittivity (from 5.5. to 26 at an electrical fieldfrequency of 1 kHz). Data on the ionic and electronic components of theconductivity of the composite film are presented. Keywords: chitosan, electrical conductivity, nanotubes, dielectric constant, composite.\