Composite Materials Based on Polypropylene and Carbon Nanofillers Obtained by in Situ Polymerization

A brief review of research initiated by works carried out earlier under the guidance of N.S. Enikolopov on the production of composite materials based on polypropylene and nanocarbon fillers by in situ polymerization is provided. The data on the mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of the resulting materials are presented. The structure and concentration of nanofillers, as well as the structure of polypropylene (iso-, syndio-, and stereoblock), have a significant impact on the characteristics of the composites. The introduction of carbon nanofillers into the polypropylene matrix leads to a noticeable increase in the thermal and thermo-oxidative stability of the material. The prospects for using nanocomposites based on polypropylene and nanotubes and graphene nanoplatelets to develop shields and absorbers of electromagnetic radiation are considered. It has been shown that the modification of polypropylene properties by introducing various types of carbon nanofillers using in situ polymerization makes it possible to design novel functional composite materials with a valuable set of properties.