Fabrication and characterization of PVC based flexible nanocomposites for the shielding against EMI, NIR, and thermal imaging signals

Polypyrrole (PPy) and barium hexaferrite (BaFe) were prepared successfully by chemical polymerization and co-precipitation method, respectively. Nanocomposites based on polyvinyl chloride (PVC) matrix with different compositions of PPy and BaFe were fabricated by solution casting method with 0.5 mm film thickness. The key application of these nanocomposites is the electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding in microwave frequency (0.1 GHz-20 GHz) and infrared (IR) shielding in near-infrared (NIR) wavelength (700–2500 nm). The PPy effect on electrical conductivity was measured and the results showed an increase in electrical conductivity by increasing the PPy content while BaFe as electrically insulative has a negligible effect on electrical conductivity. Less than 0.2% transmission was observed in the NIR region and a maximum SE of 88.5 dB was achieved with absorption dominant mechanism. The main reason for enhanced EMI SE of nanocomposites is dispersion state, fillers interaction with the polymer matrix, and fillers nature.