Thermoplastic cassava starch blend with polyethylene-grafted-maleic anhydride and gelatin core-shell structure compatibilizer.

Thermoplastic starch (TPS) was prepared from cassava starch blended with glycerol (70:30 w/w). Gelatin (Gel) was incorporated into the TPS in water. The TPS/Gel was melt-blended with polyethylene-grafted-maleic anhydride (PEMAH).

Sericin cocoon bio-compatibilizer for reactive blending of thermoplastic cassava starch.

Cassava starch was blended with glycerol to prepare thermoplastic starch (TPS). Thermoplastic starch was premixed with sericin (TPSS) by solution mixing and then melt-blended with polyethylene grafted maleic anhydride (PEMAH). The effect of sericin on the mechanical properties, morphology, thermal properties, rheology, and reaction mechanism was investigated.

Corn starch reactive blending with latex from natural rubber using Na ions augmented carboxymethyl cellulose as a crosslinking agent.

A mixture of corn starch and glycerol plasticizer (CSG) was blended with latex natural rubber (LNR) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC). The addition of 10 phr of CMC improved the Young's modulus (6.7 MPa), tensile strength (8 MPa), and elongation at break (80%) of the CSG/LNR blend.

Thermoplastic mung bean starch/natural rubber/sericin blends for improved oil resistance.

Oil resistant thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) were prepared using mung bean thermoplastic starch (MTPS) blending with rubbers and sericin. Sericin was incorporated into MTPS as a compatibilizer. MTPS with sericin (MTPSS) was blended with natural rubber (NR) and epoxidized NR (ENR).

Study of crystallization behaviour of electron beam irradiated polypropylene and high-density polyethylene.

The influence of electron-beam irradiation on polypropylene (PP) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) was investigated with a focus on crystallization. A high-temperature (200°C) creep test revealed that the HDPE gradually increased cross-linking density in the range 30-120 kGy, while the PP underwent a chain scission which was quantitatively evaluated by gel permeation chromatography. The mechanical properties were measured in the range -150 to 200°C by a dynamic mechanical analysis.

Effect of sodium benzoate and chlorhexidine gluconate on a bio-thermoplastic elastomer made from thermoplastic starch-chitosan blended with epoxidized natural rubber.

Thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) was developed by blending thermoplastic starch (TPS) with rubber. Thermoplastic starch-chitosan (TPSC) was prepared by the solution mixing of cassava starch, chitosan (CTS) and glycerol in acidified water (lactic acid 1 wt%) at 80 °C follow by melt mixing at 130 °C. Sodium benzoate (BEN) and chlorhexidine gluconate (Cl) were added during the solution mixing as additives for antimicrobial properties.

Microsphere Adhesion on Rubber Films Accompanied by Sphere Sedimentation.

Understanding the adhesion process between a rigid material (filler) and a viscoelastic material is important for designing an enhanced industrial material. However, the adhesion process is not simple because the properties of the adhesive, adherend, and interface are intricately influenced by this process. Here we investigate the adhesion of microspheres onto rubber films to clarify the dominant factor in the adhesion process.

PET/Graphene Compatibilization for Different Aspect Ratio Graphenes via Trimellitic Anhydride Functionalization.

Two trimellitic anhydride-functionalized, thermally reduced graphenes with different aspect ratios, , and the same C/O ratio (8:1) were prepared and melt-mixed into poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), and the mechanical properties of the resulting nanocomposites were studied with a focus on plastic deformation behavior. A slight increase in the ' of the melt was observed for the surface-modified low- graphene composites ( = 20) below the percolation threshold, whereas a significant enhancement in ' was observed for higher- graphene composites ( = 80) at all graphene loadings, both below and above the percolation concentration. Furthermore, the use of modified low- graphene caused an improvement both in Young's modulus and elongation at break of the resulting PET nanocomposites because of enhancement of interfacial adhesion between filler and matrix which resulted in the formation of a coupled network via covalent bonding and the suppression both of strain-induced orientation and strain-induced crystallization.

Higher-Order Structure in Amorphous Poly(ethylene terephthalate)/Graphene Nanocomposites and Its Correlation with Bulk Mechanical Properties.

Graphene of two different aspect ratios, , was melt mixed with poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) to form amorphous PET/graphene composites with less than 5% crystallinity. The higher-order structure and mechanical properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) in these composites were investigated using techniques such as differential scanning calorimetry and dynamic mechanical analysis, whereas transmission electron microscopy, melt rheology, and electrical conductivity were used to study the graphene dispersion. A decrease in heat capacity changes, Δ , of PET in nanocomposites at the glass transition temperature, , without change suggests that a rigid amorphous fraction (RAF) of PET was formed at the PET/graphene interface.

Structural Changes in Poly(trimethylene adipate) and Poly(trimethylene succinate) During Melt Crystallization Studied Using In Situ Infrared Spectroscopy.

This paper investigates the structural changes occurring in poly(trimethylene adipate) (PTAd) and poly(trimethylene succinate) (PTSu) during melt crystallization using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and in situ Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. Cooling thermograms revealed that PTAd had a faster crystallization rate than PTSu. Infrared (IR) bands of the two polyesters were assigned by correlating with the IR bands of polymers containing the trimethylene and the diacid segments.

Reactive blending of thermoplastic starch and polyethylene-graft-maleic anhydride with chitosan as compatibilizer.

Cassava starch was melt-blended with glycerol (70/30wt%/wt%) at 140°C to prepare thermoplastic starch (TPS). Chitosan (CTS) was premixed with starch and glycerol, in acidified water (lactic acid 2wt%), at 1, 5 and 10wt%/wt%. TPS/CTS was then melt-blended (160°C) with polyethylene-graft-maleic anhydride (PE-MAH).

AFM probing of polymer/nanofiller interfacial adhesion and its correlation with bulk mechanical properties in a poly(ethylene terephthalate) nanocomposite.

The interfacial adhesion between polymer and nanofiller plays an important role in affecting the properties of nanocomposites. The detailed relationship between interfacial adhesion and bulk properties, however, is unclear. In this work, we developed an atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based abrasive scanning methodology, as applied to model laminate systems, to probe the strength of interfacial adhesion relevant to poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET)/graphene or clay nanocomposites.