Enhancing the electrical and thermal stability of metallic fiber-filled polymer composites by adding tin–lead alloy

This article presents a novel way of greatly enhancing the electrical and thermal stability of copper fiber (CuF)-filled acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene (ABS) composites via the incorporation of small amount of tin–lead (Sn–Pb) alloy. It was observed that many fibers are soldered together by Sn–Pb, and a continuous CuF/Sn–Pb network is formed throughout the ABS matrix. As a result, the percolation concentration of ABS/CuF composite containing 1 vol% Sn–Pb is lower than for ABS/CuF composite, and the addition of Sn–Pb to the ABS composites containing 5 vol% CuF leads to a further decrease of electrical resistivity compared to ABS/CuF composites with corresponding filler contents. Furthermore, the electrical resistivity of ABS/CuF/Sn–Pb composite shows no temperature dependence, and remains constant during the thermal post-treatment.