Preparation and characterisation of nickel-plated carbon fibre/polyether ether ketone composites with high electromagnetic shielding and high thermal conductivity

Nickel-plated carbon fibre (Ni-CF) was successfully synthesized by electroplating. The microstructures of Ni-CF were studied by scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis, thermogravimetric analysis and X-ray diffraction. Results showed that a layer of continuous Ni membrane was coated on the surface of CF. Ni-CF/polyether ether ketone (PEEK) composites were prepared by melt-mixing. The thermal conductivity of the Ni-CF/PEEK composite reached 0.59 W/(m K), which is 2.54 times higher than that of pure PEEK. When the Ni-CF content was 40 wt%, the electrical conductivity of the composites reached to the value of 1.9 × 10⁴ S/m. Electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding properties of the composites were measured within the frequency range of 8.2–12.4 GHz by using waveguide method. The Ni-CF/PEEK composites were 0.6 mm thick and showed an EMI shielding effectiveness of 29 dB.