Surface Potential Decay on LDPE and its Nanocomposites

Paper in proceedings, 2017

To elucidate capabilities of nanocomposites in a full extend, deep understanding of various physical processes induced by electric fields in the bulk and on surfaces of the materials is needed. This paper reports an investigation of surface potential decay on low-density polyethylene and its mixtures with Al2O3 and MgO nanofillers. Samples of two groups materials with various thicknesses prepeared using different manufacturing processes were used in the study. The samples were pre-charged by negative corona and surface potentials were measured by a non-contact technique at room temperature. The obtained results showed that the addition of nanofillers remarkably slowed down the potential decay process irrespectively of film thicknesses and fabrication processes. This is attributed to the significantly lower conductivities of LDPE nanocomposites as compared to pure material. Moreover, the conductivities of the filled materials exhibited strong electric field dependences. It is postulated that the effect can be related to the increased trap energy in the nanocomposites.