Preparation and properties of an antistatic UV-curable coating modified by multi-walled carbon nanotubes

Ultraviolet (UV)-curable coating with strong electric insulation which applied on the surface of plastic panel will produce static security risks. As a kind of antistatic agent, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) possess remarkable electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties, which are widely applied on varieties of materials. In this work, a kind of MWCNTs modified antistatic UV-curable coating for the surface of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) substrates was obtained. MWCNTs were oxidized by acid mixture firstly, then silanized using a coupling agent, 3-(methacryloxy)propyltrimethoxysilane (3-MAPTES). The results showed that when MWCNTs content was 2.0 wt% and the ball milling time was 1.5 h, the surface resistivity of the UV-curable coating was 4.1 × 10⁷ Ω, which may meet the requirement of antistatic applications. Meanwhile, there was only a slight variation on the adhesion and glossiness of the coating. The FESEM micrograph of the antistatic UV-curable coating showed that MWCNTs were dispersed uniformly in the prepared UV-curable coatings and most of them inside the coating existed in a stacking way. MWCNTs may form a conductive network and make the electrostatic charge diffused not only through the surface of UV-curable coating, but also through the inside of the coating.