Electrical properties of crosslinked polyethylene/carbon black switching composites as a function of morphology and structure of the carbon black

Abstract

The electrical resistivity of a radiation‐crosslinked polyethylene/carbon black switching composite was investigated as a function of carbon black content and temperature. Carbon blacks of different morphology and microstructure behaved differently regarding the electrical resistivity. A HG black, highly porous and structured, imparts high conductivity to its composite mixture at a low degree of loading, whereas nonporous acetylene EQ black of like structure requires a higher degree of loading to impart the same conductivity. The PTC (positive temperature coefficient) effect anomaly was smaller for HG black than for EQ black. It was found that the PTC anomaly was heightened when a combination of the two different carbon blacks was mixed into the composites. Suggestions as to the causes for this particular behavior are made with reference to the electron micrography and other parameters for microstructure of the two carbon blacks.