1,721,046 research outputs found
Optimization of two-step techniques engineered for the preparation of polyamide 6 graphene oxide nanocomposites
No full textDifferent processing conditions to achieve polyamide 6 (PA6)-graphene oxide (GO) nanocomposites were investigated. GO was pre-dispersed in PA6 by three different solvent-based methods and, further, melt processed to prepare nanocomposites at two different loading levels, namely 2 and 5 wt.%. The evolution of rheological and mechanical properties was analyzed by investigating eventual changes in the microstructure and polymer crystallinity, aiming at providing a detailed processing-structure-properties relationship for these systems
Reprocessing of polyethyleneterephthalate and characterisation of monopolymer blends of virgin and recycled polymers
No full textRecycling of polyethyleneterephthalate (PET from bottles is considered by changing both reprocessing machines and the effect of humidity. The rheological and mechanical properties of this recycled material remain very close to that of the virgin material provided that a careful drying is carried out before any melt operation. The reprocessing has been carried out mainly in view of the use of this secondary material in blends with virgin PET-monopolymer or homopolymer blends. Indeed, this use is a common industrial practice to reuse plastic scraps. Most monopolymer blends show properties between those of the two components but in some cases lower than those expected on the basis of an additive rule. In some cases minima in the properties-composition curves are observed. This occurs mainly when the properties of the two components are very similar. Blends with similar amounts of the two components should be then avoided. On the contrary, when the characteristics of the virgin and of the recycled component are very different, the properties of the blends are determined by those of the matrix
Effect of graphene and fabrication technique on the release kinetics of carvacrol from polylactic acid
Full text linkPorous membranes and thin films containing poly-lactic acid (PLA), carvacrol (CRV) and graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) were fabricated by electrospinning and solvent casting at different formulations. The systems were characterized from a mechanical, morphological, calorimetric and spectroscopic point of view. CRV release as a function of time was studied and a mathematical model was used to fit and interpret the data in order to investigate the release mechanism. The results indicate that the incorporation of GNP generally determined a simultaneous strengthening, stiffening and toughening effect, while preserving a good ductility. Furthermore, integrating GNP allowed tuning the amount and kinetics of CRV release, and proved to reduce the initial burst release effect
Recycling of a starch-based biodegradable polymer
No full textA new starch-based polymeric system, ZI1OU from Novamont, mainly composed of starch and polycaprolactone, was reprocessed several times in an extruder to investigate the recyclability of this biodegradable polymer. A previous investigation of the thermomechanical degradation in a mixer has been also done. The degradation is mostly due to the thermal stress but the presence of the mechanical stress strongly increases the degradation kinetic. During melt processing two concurrent processes take place: the first is the degradation, i.e. the breaking and shortening of polymeric chains, mostly occurring in the PCL phase; the second is the formation of some crosslinked structure in the starch phase. The rheological and mechanical properties, measured on samples subjected to repetitive extrusion operations carried out in a single screw extruder, clearly indicate that, in the adopted processing conditions, no significant modifications are observed. Only after five extrusions some decrease of these properties was measured
Image processing techniques for the analysis of the micro-architecture of three-dimensional porous scaffolds
No full textInfluence of oxidation level of graphene oxide on the mechanical performance and photo-oxidation resistance of a polyamide 6
Full text linkThe aim of this work is to study the relationship between the chemical-physical properties of graphene oxide (GO) and the performance of a polyamide 6 (PA6) in terms of mechanical reinforcement and resistance to UV-exposure. For this purpose, two samples of GO possessing different oxidation degrees were added (0.75 wt.%) to PA6 by way of a two-step technique and the materials achieved were carefully analysed froma morphological, chemical-physical, mechanical point of view. Photo-oxidation tests were carried out to assess the performance of this class of nanohybrids after 240 h of UV-exposure. The results reveal that both nanocomposites exhibit enhanced mechanical performance and durability of PA6. However, the most oxidized GO led to a higher increase of mechanical properties and a stronger resistance to UV-exposure. All the analyses confirm that bothGO samples are well dispersed and covalently attached to PA6. However, the higher the oxidation level of GO the stronger and the more extended the chemical interphase of the nanocomposite. As regards photochemical stability, both GO samples display UV-shielding capacity but the most oxidized GO also shows radical scavenging activity by virtue of its nanocavities and defects, imparted by prolonged oxidation, which endows PA6 with an outstanding durability even after 240 h of UV-exposure
Use of PP-g-OXA in the compatibilization of PP/LCP blends
No full textAdding small amounts of liquid crystalline polymers (LCP) to flexible thermoplastic matrices (FTP) allows to enhance the mechanical and thermomechanical properties. Therefore it is possible to obtain materials with new properties only by simple mixing. A strong shortcoming is the incompatibility between LCP and FTP that leads to materials with very poor properties unusable for commercial pourposes. The presence of a compatibilizer is therefore required. Oxazoline functionality is known to be highly reactive toward many other functional groups and then oxazoline functionalized polymers can be efficiently used as compatibilizer precursors. In this work the compatibilizazion of polypropylene (PP) with a semirigid LCP by using an ad hoc tailored oxazoline functionalized PP has been studied
Tunable release of Chlorhexidine from Polycaprolactone-based filaments containing graphene nanoplatelets
No full textGraphene nanoplatelets (GNP) as fillers and Chlorhexidine (CHX), as an antibacterial agent, were incorporated in a polycaprolactone (PCL) matrix and processed into filaments by melt spinning. The influence of both drawing and formulation on the processability, spinnability, mechanical properties and release behaviour of these materials were deeply investigated by performing rheological, morphological analysis, tensile tests, and by measuring the cumulative release of CHX in PBS at 37 °C. Furthermore, Korsmeyer–Peppas model was adopted to study the kinetics release mechanism. The results showed that adding GNP did not alter the processability and spinnability of the systems. Furthermore, a monotonic trend of all of the properties investigated was found as a function of GNP/CHX ratio and DR: stiffness and tensile strength of such fibers were found to increase, and the release behaviour proved to be tunable. In fact, upon increasing GNP content, burst was progressively hindered at the initial stage of release, while being progressively enhanced the kinetics and amount of CHX at the final stage
An investigation of the compatibilization of blends of polyethylene and a semirigid liquid crystalline polymer
No full textThe mechanical properties of blends with liquid crystalline polymers are in general poor and lower than those expected on the basis of additivity rule because of the strong incompatibility between the flexible and rigid components. Compatibilization is then necessary to enhance the adhesion between the two phases and then to improve the final properties of these blends. The addition of maleic anhydride functionalized polymers could give rise to some compatibilization because of possible reactions between the maleic anhydride group and the end groups of the liquid crystalline polymers. These reactions do not seem to occur in blends of polyethylene and a semirigid liquid crystalline polymer. The small increase of viscosity and of some mechanical properties can be ascribed to the occurrence of polar interactions, such as hydrogen bonding between the components
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