Anti‐Static Performance of Graphene and Carbon Nanotube ( CNT ) Tailored Glass Fiber/Polyester Composites Under Ambient and Hygrothermal Aging Conditions

ABSTRACT Glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) composites are increasingly being used in various structural applications. But, due to their poor electrical conductivity, static charge generated during their use remained accumulated on the component surface and causes various undesirable static incidents like electrical shock to the people, fire, or explosion etc. These lead to significant loss of people and property. Anti‐static FRP composite can resolve this issue by dissipating the unwanted static charge. In this work we have utilized graphene and carbon nanotube (CNT) to enhance the electrical conductivity of normal GFRP and make it anti‐static. Matrix modification with 0.03 wt% CNT or 0.75% graphene was used for this purpose. At these loadings both surface resistivity (SR) and volume resistivity (VR) of GFRP come within 10 ⁶ –10 ⁷ Ohm range and the material becomes anti‐static. Flexural and dynamic mechanical properties of the anti‐static FRP composites also exhibited significant improvement. Hygrothermal aging was performed at two different temperatures (30°C and 60°C) to check the effect of temperature and humidity on anti‐static performance.