The reinforcing effect of montmorillonite on thermoplastic starch/low density polyethylene matrix

Document Type : Original Paper

Authors

1 Polymeric Materials Research Group, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, 11155-9466, Tehran, Iran.

2 polymeric materials research group, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Sharif University of Technology Tehran,iran

3 Soil Science Department, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran.

Abstract

In this research, composite nanofibers containing carbon nanotubes (CNT) were prepared The needs to replace the petroleum-based polymers with more environmentally friendly ones has been growingcontinuously over the past two decades. As a matter of fact, lower materialcosts, easy processing and environmental concerns are the major driving forces for using biodegradable polymers. On the contrary, low mechanical properties and high hydrophilicity are the main challenges of natural polymers. Consequently, recent research has focused on the composite preparation. One of the most effective approaches to reduce these limitations is the blending of thermoplastic starch(TPS) as a biodegradable polymer with the petroleum-based polymers and nanoclay to prepare a nanocomposite with satisfying mechanical properties. In this study, montmorillonitenanoclay was added as reinforcing agents to alloy the TPS/low density polyethylene(LDPE) by twin-extruder in presence of polyethylene grafted maleic anhydride (PE-g-MA). The addition of 5 phr(part per hundred) nanoclay increased the tensile strength and Young’s modulus of the samples by 53% and 19% respectivelyin comparison to those that do not/without have PE-g-MA.The X-ray diffraction (XRD) was also implemented to investigate the intercalation and exfoliation phenomena. Soil burial biodegradation tests, carried out for samples and followed by CO2 emitted measurements, revealed that biodegradation was enhanced for the hybrid materials in comparison to low density polyethylene.

Keywords

Innovations in Materials: Current & Future
Volume 1, Issue 1
January 2014

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