Nanostrands have been mixed into several elastomers, both thermosets and thermoplastics. These elastomer resins have also been infused into nanostrand preforms.
When the nanostrands are mixed into a silicone elastomer at a moderate loading of about 5% to 10%, the resulting material improves in conductivity by several orders of magnitude when placed under compression of strain. Under compression, it is thought that the deformation places the nanostrands into closer proximity to its neighbors, thus facilitating electrical percolation. Under strain, it is thought that the stretch deformation of the elastomer also places the nanostrands in better proximity to each other.
See a Movie Clip of the Elastomer Compression and Tension
Nanostrand elastomers also make excellent conductive coatings, gap fillers and gaskets. For instance, a nanostrand preform can be compressed to a sheet of any desired thickness or shape, with a volume fraction of about 10% nanostrands and a conductivity of .001 ohm-cm. Of course, higher compression will result in higher density and even better conductivity. This porous sheet can then be infused with a wide range of elastomer resins, resulting in a lightweight, net shape, highly conductive gasket.
When nanostrand elastomers are clamped in physical contact, the surface deformation results in a good electrical contact. The picture below shows two glass panels that were sprayed with about .020" of polyurethane elastomer. While each of the films exhibit a surface resistance of about 0.1 ohm per square, when the films are placed facing each other and clamped, the resistance across the contact and the two panels is also only about 0.1 ohm.
When these elastomers are applied as a spray, they are able to bridge significant gaps. For instance, in the example below, a 1/16" gap between two glass panels has been easily filled with a conductive spray elastomer, resulting in a surface resistance across the gap that is similar to the rest of the surface.
The picture below shows the conductive spray elastomer as it has filled a non planar gap of .040" and replicated a non planar contour.
