Structural, mechanical and thermal behavior assessments of PCL/PHB blends reactively compatibilized with organic peroxides
Abstract The efficiency of two commercially available organic peroxides, dicumyl peroxide (DCP) and di-(2-tert-butyl-peroxyisopropyl)-benzene (BIB), during reactive processing of poly(e-caprolactone)/poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PCL/PHB) blends was investigated. The changes in chemical structure of PCL/PHB blends, as a function of organic peroxide type (DCP/BIB) and content (in range: 0–1.0 parts by weight - pbw), were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis combined with infrared spectroscopy, and headspace analysis combined with gas chromatography with flame ionization detector. Performance properties of PCL/PHB blends were evaluated based on diffe…
Structure and performance properties of environmentally-friendly biocomposites based on poly(ɛ-caprolactone) modified with copper slag and shale drill cuttings wastes.
The potential application of two types of industrial wastes, drill cuttings (DC) and copper slag (CS), as silica-rich modifiers of poly(ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL) was investigated. Chemical structure and physical properties of DC and CS fillers were characterized using X-ray diffractometer, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, particle size and density measurements. PCL/DC and PCL/CS composites with a variable content of filler (5 to 50 parts by weight) were prepared by melt compounding in an internal mixer. It was observed that lower particle size of DC filler enhanced processing of biocomposites comparing to CS filler. Smaller particles of DC filler and thus the higher specific surface area, enabl…