0000000000535032
AUTHOR
Oskars Platnieks
Hydrothermal degradation of biobased poly(butylene succinate)/nanofibrillated cellulose composites
Biobased polymers and composites have gained increased global attention due to their abundance, renewability, and biodegradability. Natural fillers such as cellulose-based fillers improve the mechanical properties of biopolymers, extending their application range, while maintaining the eco-friendly characteristics of the materials. Mowing towards engineering applications, requirements imposed on materials’ durability with regard to their environmental impact and high performance is necessary. Variations of ambient humidity and temperature could essentially reduce the service lifetime of biobased polymer composites. This study is focused on the hydrothermal degradation of poly(butylene succi…
Water absorption and hydrothermal ageing of epoxy adhesives reinforced with amino-functionalized graphene oxide nanoparticles
Abstract The study is focused on quantitative characterization of water absorption and hydrothermal ageing effects in a room-temperature amine cured epoxy adhesive widely used in automotive, aerospace, construction, and marine industries. Amino-functionalized graphene oxide (mGO) nanoparticles were incorporated into the epoxy (up to 1.72 wt.%) enabled cross-linking reactions and providing high interfacial adhesion, superior reinforcement efficiency and enhanced resistance to hydrothermal ageing of nanocomposites. Anomalous water absorption accompanied by progressive weight loss of samples (down to 7%) is fitted by two-stage models considering additive and coupled contribution from water dif…
Durability of Biodegradable Polymer Nanocomposites
Biodegradable polymers (BP) are often regarded as the materials of the future, which address the rising environmental concerns. The advancement of biorefineries and sustainable technologies has yielded various BP with excellent properties comparable to commodity plastics. Water resistance, high dimensional stability, processability and excellent physicochemical properties limit the reviewed materials to biodegradable polyesters and modified compositions of starch and cellulose, both known for their abundance and relatively low price. The addition of different nanofillers and preparation of polymer nanocomposites can effectively improve BP with controlled functional properties and change the…
Hydrothermal Ageing Effect on Reinforcement Efficiency of Nanofibrillated Cellulose/Biobased Poly(butylene succinate) Composites
Nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) is a sustainable functional nanomaterial known for its high strength, stiffness, and biocompatibility. It has become a key building block for the next-generation of lightweight, advanced materials for applications such as consumer products, biomedical, energy storage, coatings, construction, and automotive. Tunable and predictable durability under environmental impact is required for high performance applications. Bio-based poly (butylene succinate) (PBS) composites containing up to 50% NFC content were designed and aged in distilled water or at high relative humidity (RH98%). PBS/NFC composites are characterized by up to 10-fold increased water absorption ca…
From Wood and Hemp Biomass Wastes to Sustainable Nanocellulose Foams
Abstract Transition to the circular economy requires the implementation of recycling and reuse routes for waste products. This research addresses one of the leading emerging areas, i.e., the development of sustainable materials and natural waste processing, namely wood and hemp byproducts. The cellulosic nanomaterials derived from these under-utilized waste residues and byproducts also serve as promising natural precursors for advanced applications, e.g., biomedical, pollution filtering, and thermal insulation. The wood and hemp fibrils were prepared by microfluidic processing of 0.2 – 1.0 wt% cellulose water suspensions. After freeze-drying, the resulting foam materials were characterized …