INTEMA   05428
INSTITUTO DE INVESTIGACIONES EN CIENCIA Y TECNOLOGIA DE MATERIALES
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
congresos y reuniones científicas
Título:
Nanocomposites reinforced with starch and cellulose nanocrystals using PEO as buffer polymer
Autor/es:
PEREDA, M; EL KISSI, N.; DUFRESNE, A.
Reunión:
Congreso; 41e Colloque National du Groupe Français des Polymères; 2012
Resumen:
Starch nano-crystals (SNCs) and cellulose nano-whiskers (CNWs) are mainly used as nano-fillers in polymeric matrices because they are renewable and environmentally benign, naturally abundant, biodegradable, biocompatible and principally because they allow the production of nanocomposite materials with improved mechanical properties. The main problem for the preparation of these nanocomposites is related to the heterogeneous dispersion of nano-fillers within the polymer matrix, due to strong interactions between them. Thus, the objective of this work was to improve the dispersion/compatibilization of nano-particles in a LDPE matrix using an adsorbed polymer as buffer, with the final aim to prepare nanocomposites by melt-extrusion techniques. Polyethylene oxide or “PEO” was chosen to functionalize the surface of the nano-crystals, by adsorbing itself onto the surface of the CNWs or SNCs by means of hydrogen bonding. By studying the influence of nano-crystals concentration on the rheological properties of PEO/nano-fillers suspensions, it was possible to observe a minimum in viscosity, and also a shifting of that value at lower concentrations when reducing the PEO molecular weight from 5,000,000 to 35,000. This value corresponds with a theoretical saturation point, at which the maximum amount of PEO has adsorbed onto the CNWs and SNCs. The influence of the nature of nanocrystals (cellulose and starch) and the molecular weight of the PEO (from 35,000 to 5,000,000) on the mechanical properties of the nanocomposites is also studied.