A STUDY ON MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF POLYDIMETHYLSILOXANE (PDMS) COMPOSITES

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), a transparent elastomer, is widely used yet suffers from subpar mechanical qualities, making it unsuitable for several tasks. Carbon nanotubes (CNT) are employed as fillers in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) because of the exceptional mechanical qualities they offer. The addition of MWCNT to PDMS nanocomposites increased their elastic modulus and strength. This is because mechanical parameters like hardness (H), elastic modulus (E), and others may be obtained from very tiny samples using the micro indentation experiment. The mechanical characteristics of PDMS/MWCNT composites are improved over those of pure PDMS. FTIR analysis reveals that bonding between MWCNT and PDMS modifies mechanical properties. When MWCNT concentration increases, the roughness detected by AFM diminishes. The MWCNTs are evenly dispersed throughout the PDMS matrix, as shown by SEM examination.