Effects of Atomic Oxygen Irradiation on the Structural and Thermal Properties of ABPBI/MWCNT Composites

ABPBI/MWCNT composites were irradiated with atomic oxygen (AO) in a ground-based accelerator facility to understand the effects of AO irradiation on the structural and thermal properties of the composites. The structural changes were characterized by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, whereas the thermal changes were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis. The AO exposure induced small decreases in the polymer and the ABPBI/MWCNT composite's characteristic XRD and FTIR peak intensities, which supports that the integrity of the materials holds after 1 and 3-hour beam exposure. The structural analysis unpacked the mechanisms by which the AO interacted with the samples, and in all instances, the samples enhanced with MWCNT performed better. ABPBI has good, high thermal stability. The thermal analysis results showed that the benefits of adding the MWCNTs become most significant as the exposure time increases.