Mostafa Jafari - Nano Technology Research Group, Iranian Academic Center for Education, Culture & Research (ACECR), Fars Branch, Shiraz, Iran
Moslem Zhubin - Department of Polymer Science and Catalysts, Faculty of Engineering, Iran Polymer and Petrochemical Institute

Antistatic nanocomposite coatings based on GPTMS and TEOS and ITO nanoparticles by sol-gel method have been made and evaluated.The sols are prepared by hydrolysis and condensation of GPTMS and TEOS precursors in presence of an acid as catalyst and EDA as curingagent. Considering its good electrical conductivity, Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) nanoparticles are used as antistatic agents. To improve thedistribution/ dispersion of ITO nanoparticles in the polymer matrix, the surface of nanoparicles is modified with silane groups (m-ITO). thechemical bonds and chemical structure of the hybrid coatings are evaluated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Theantistatic properties of the coatings, containing various amounts of m- ITO nanoparticles, are investigated through surface electrical resistivitymeasurements. sheet resistance of the hybrid coatings decreased considerably from 3.14×1012 Ω/square for the pure hybrid sample to3.89×109 Ω/square for a sample containing 1 wt.% m-ITO nanoparticles. According to these results it can be concluded that thehybrid coatings with 1 wt.% nanoparticles and more can be considered as good candidates for antistatic applications. The surface morphologyof coatings was investigated through SEM analysis. SEM indicates the inorganic particles (ITO nanoparticles) are uniformly distributed withinthe polymer matrix. The majority of the particles in this figure hold a mean diameter well below 100nm. They are well organized, andhomogeneously distributed throughout the surface. The cubic shape and nanometric size of the nanoparticles in the hybrid coatings aremonitored by transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

Nanocomposite, Antistatic, Coatings, Hybrid, Organic-Inorganic, ITO Nanoparticles