Production of leather‐like composites using short leather fibers. II. Mechanical characterization

Abstract

Leicestershire LEI 1 3TU, United Kingdom J. L. CRUZ MACHIN Escuela Militar de lngenieros Calz. Mtkico-Tacuba, Mkxico, D. F.Leather-like composites were prepared by addition of chemically modified short leather fibers (SLF) into a plasticized polyvinyl chloride (pWC) matrix. The fibers were subjected to chemical modification by emulsion polymerization to achieve good interfacial adhesion between SLF and the pWC matrix. The SLF with chemical modification were obtained from three different reaction conditions where these SLF have different percentages of grafted and deposited PMMA polymer onto the fiber surface. The incorporation of the SLF into the thermoplastic matrix was carried out using a torque-rheometer and the composites obtained were molded by compression. Tensile and tear mechanical tests were performed on composite samples, and the morphology of the fractured surfaces was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results show that the incorporation by grafting of polymethyl metacrylate (PMMA) onto the fibers produced a significant improvement of their interfacial adhesion to pWC, promoting the compatibilization between the fiber surface and matrix. The findings are discussed and interpreted in terms of enhanced adhesion at phase boundaries. Overall, the results confirm that it is possible to produce modified leather composites based on a pPVC matrix, which exhibit relatively high tensile strength, tear resistance and flexibility. These composites are very suitable candidate materials for applications in the footwear industry.

Synthesis and application of methyl methacrylate/butyl acrylate copolymer nanoemulsions as efficient retanning and lubricating agents for chrome‐tanned leather

“…For these reasons, the leather industry has issued laws and legislations for reagents used in leather industry must be safe and friendly to environment. So, it is better to use a prepared polymer emulsion using aqueous emulsion polymerization technique 16 for retanning of leather to avoid the toxicity of free monomers and to limit the use of organic solvents during the grafting process.…”

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Isolated left pulmonary artery: Interventional stenting of a persistent fifth aortic arch

“…However, the tensile strength tends to increase slightly when the amount of leather in the composites increases from 30 to 70%. The mechanical properties of fiber‐reinforced composites depend not only on the characteristics of the polymer matrix and the reinforcement fibers but also on the interface between the matrix and the fiber, which is important for the transfer of interfacial stress [1, 4, 5, 12, 14, 15, 30].…”

“…Another alternative for leather residue is to incorporate the leather as filler in thermosetting and thermoplastic polymers using batch equipment such as Bambury internal mixers or continuous feed extruders [4, 5, 12–18]. The advantage of a continuous process such as extrusion is that the components can be shaped into a final product just off the extruder, making this process highly productive.…”