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This article investigates the effect of raw material preparation on the mechanical and physical properties in wood‐plastic composite (WPC) production. Four possible procedures in material preparation to obtain a determined level of wood content are: (i) to use and feed raw materials in the same ratio of the desired composition (single stage), (ii) to use the batch of granules of the same composition (two‐stage), (iii) to add wood to the batch of granules having a lower wood content, (iv) to add polymer to the batch of granules having a higher wood content. The main question then is that, while it is economically attractive to use granules of a fixed wood content in all productions, whether there are noticeable differences in final properties of the products. The examined compositions were 50, 60, and 70 wt% of wood content which are considered as highly filled WPCs and mainly used in the WPC markets. Thus, 12 sets of WPC profiles were manufactured and the processing conditions (temperature, pressure, and outlet velocity) recorded. The flexural properties, impact strength, density, and water uptake were measured. Results revealed that in the production of WPCs with 50 and 70 wt% of wood content, using the WPC granules with the same composition yields better physical and mechanical properties. However, for producing WPC with 60 wt% of wood content, using WPC granules with 70 wt% of wood and adding appropriate amount of polymer exhibit better results. POLYM. COMPOS. 34:1349–1356, 2013. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers

In this study, new composite coatings are fabricated and investigated for their applications as the metal coating. The studied coatings consist of two-layered composites with various nanoparticulates as fillers in a polymeric matrix (styrene acrylic). The first layer bonded to the steel plate uses a combination of zinc particles, multi-walled carbon nanotubes, and graphene nanoplatelets. For the second layer, hexagonal boron nitride with high electrical insulation properties is added to the matrix. The morphology of the nanoparticulates is conducted using a scanning electron microscope. The coefficient of thermal expansion, cathodic disbondment resistance, gas penetration, and scratch resistance of the coatings are evaluated. The corroded area on the cathodic disbondment test specimens reduced down up to 90% for the composite with zinc (20 wt%), multi-walled carbon nanotubes (2 wt%), and graphene nanoplatelets (2 wt%), compared to a specimen coated with a pure polymer. It is seen that the presence of nanoparticulates decreased gas permeation and thermal expansion of the matrix by 75% and 65%, respectively. The addition of nanoparticulates also enhanced scratch resistance of the coating composites.

A chaotic mixer is developed and optimized in order to overcome challenges associated with mixing polymers with high aspect ratio nano‐particulates. The chaotic mixing system utilizes two cylindrical rotors to uniformly mix multi‐walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with a thermoplastic. Results of the electrical conductivity and electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding effectiveness of the chaotic mixed nanocomposites were higher than ones mixed via a commercial HAAKE mixer. MWCNTs’ length was investigated and it was observed that the MWCNTs in chaotic mixed nanocomposites are longer compared to HAAKE mixer. To investigate the effects of MWCNTs’ length on the electrical properties, a 3D electrical model based on random walk method was developed and examined. Obtained results suggest that the chaotic mixer has a higher potential for mixing nano particulates into thermoplastics without breaking the nanotubes and improved electrical properties, compared to other types of melt mixing techniques.