Abstract Silica nanotubes (SNTs) were coated on the surface of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to form SNTs@CNTs core–shell hybrids, which is an ingenious and rigorous method to study the effect of CNTs for improving thermal stability of composites. SNTs@CNTs, CNTs, SNTs were introduced to silicone rubber (SR) and the different composites were tested and analyzed. The difference in the properties of SR-based composites leads us to get the specific mechanism that CNTs improve thermal stability of composites. This work reveals the mechanism on CNTs improving thermal stability of composites systematically and detailedly for the first time. The theoretical research provides an efficient guideline for further studying CNTs to improve properties of composites. Moreover, SNTs@CNTs/SR composites are also valuable in engineering applications. Experimental results show that the properties of SNTs@CNTs/SR are much better than CNTs/SR. Especially the initial thermal degradation temperature (Ti) of SNTs@CNTs/SR composites is 41 °C higher than that of SR.

中文翻译：

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研究碳纳米管提高聚合物复合材料热稳定性的机理：在碳纳米管上涂覆二氧化硅的巧妙设计理念，具有工程应用价值

摘要 将二氧化硅纳米管（SNTs）包覆在碳纳米管（CNTs）表面形成SNTs@CNTs核壳杂化体，是研究CNTs提高复合材料热稳定性的一种巧妙而严谨的方法。将 SNTs@CNTs、CNTs、SNTs 引入硅橡胶 (SR) 并测试和分析不同的复合材料。SR基复合材料性能的差异使我们得到了CNT提高复合材料热稳定性的具体机制。该工作首次系统、详细地揭示了碳纳米管提高复合材料热稳定性的机理。理论研究为进一步研究碳纳米管以改善复合材料的性能提供了有效的指导。此外，SNTs@CNTs/SR 复合材料在工程应用中也很有价值。实验结果表明，SNTs@CNTs/SR的性能远优于CNTs/SR。特别是SNTs@CNTs/SR复合材料的初始热降解温度（Ti）比SR高41℃。