Isothermal and nonisothermal crystallization kinetics of nylon 6/functionalized multi‐walled carbon nanotube composites

The well dispersion of functionalized multi‐walled carbon nanotube (f‐MWCNT) in nylon 6 matrix was prepared by solution mixing techniques. The isothermal and nonisothermal crystallization kinetics of nylon 6 and nylon 6/f‐MWCNT nanocomposites were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X‐ray diffraction and polarized optical microscopy analysis. DSC isothermal results revealed that the activation energy of nylon 6 extensively decreased by adding 1 wt % f‐MWCNT into nylon 6, suggesting that the addition of small amount of f‐MWCNT probably induces the heterogeneous nucleation. Nevertheless, the addition of more f‐MWCNT into nylon 6 matrix reduced the transportation ability of polymer chains during crystallization process and thus increased the activation energy. The nonisothermal crystallization of nylon 6/f‐MWCNT nanocomposites was also discussed.