Abstract:

Elastomers are unique as they can be deformed to large deformations and then elastically spring back to their original form. But they need reinforcement to obtain high strength and desired stiffness for practical applications, which are usually made by compounding with carbon black. Layered crystals, from silicate layers to graphene to transition metal dichalcogenide, have attracted increasingly more interest over the past decades [1]. This work will demonstrate the implications of graphene on a commercial elastomer, styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR), by investigating the effect of compounding methods [2,3] on the structure–property relations of SBR/graphene composites. Graphene may hold potential to produce significant reinforcement and functionalities such as electrical and thermal conductivity and barrier property. We will also discuss future challenges.

References:
1.Nicolosi V, Chhowalla M, Kanatzidis MG, Strano MS, Coleman JN. Liquid exfoliation of layered materials. Science, 2013, 340, 1226419: 1–18.
2.Araby S, Meng Q, Zhang LQ, Kuan HC, Kang H, Majewski P, Tang Y, Ma J. Electrically and thermally conductive elastomer/graphene nanocomposites by solution mixing. Polymer. 2014, 55, 201-210.
3.Araby S, Zhang LQ, Kuan HC, Majewski P, Ma J. ‘A novel approach to electrically and thermally conductive elastomers using graphene’, Polymer, 2013, 54, 3663–70.
___________________________________

Biography:

Position: Senior Lecturer, Research Degree Supervisor and Manager of Polymer Nanotechnology Lab, the University of South Australia
Recent Work History
·Lecturer and Senior Lecturer at University of South Australia (2007–present).
·Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (2005–2008).
·Research Fellow at the University of Sydney (2002–2007).
Membership of Relevant Professional Associations
·Certified Materials Professional (CMP) of Materials Australia
·Society of Plastic Engineers
·Member of the American Chemical Society
Research Projects
Significant Scientific Projects
·2009–2012, AutoCRC project “The development of advanced adhesives using nanomaterials” ($108,800), in which I am the first chief investigator.
·2006–2009, ARC Large Grant on ‘The development of super-toughened epoxies using a novel nanomaterial’ ($285,000), in which I am the sole chief investigator.
Industrial Projects
·2001–2002, I worked on a grant ‘Preparation of high molecular weight polysilsesqui-oxane’ (US$15,000) funded by Dow Corning Corporation, USA. Polysilsesquixoane developed in my research is a heat resistant important engineering material used in aerospace industry.
·1996–1999, I worked as one of the three researchers on a Project ‘High performance elastomer’ (RMB$560,000) funded by the Ministry of Defense, China.
Current Research Directions
I am leading the following research projects with my four full-time research students:
·Novel fabrication of graphene and its polymer nanocomposites. A scalable approach for mass production of chemically modified graphene has yet to be developed, which holds the key to large-scale production of graphene for optical electronics, energy conversion and storage materials, catalysis, sensors, composites, etc. My research group has recently developed a cost-effective approach to fabri-cating graphene and its polymer composite. This novel approach could lead to future scalable production of graphene and its composites. This work has been published by Advanced Functional Materials.
·Biodegradable nanocomposites. Polymer waste, also known as white pollution, takes hundreds or thousands of years to degrade. Recently developed biodegradable polymer polylactide has not yet been widely used due to its brittleness. My research group is developing novel tougheners for polylactide using an industry compatible method–melt compounding.
·Development of advanced adhesives using nanomaterials. This project, derived from the completion of my ARC-APD, is now supported by AutoCRC for the creation of adhesive joint for automotive industry.
·Development of novel absorbents for environmental contaminants. This project, taking advantage of my expertise in exfoliating and dispersing silicate layers in poly-acrylamide, is conducted by collaborating with an environmental toxicologist Dr Gary Owen.
Future Research Directions
To maximize the funding opportunities from ARC, I will conduct the following two projects:
·Development of conductive polymer composite to harvest solar energy
·Nanocomposite as polymer electrolyte for lithium-ion battery