Strategy for the Improvement of the Mechanical Properties of Cellulose Nanofiber-Reinforced High-Density Polyethylene Nanocomposites Using Diblock Copolymer Dispersants

Abstract

Cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) hold great potential as sustainable reinforcement fillers with excellent mechanical, thermal, and chemical properties. However, in polyolefin nanocomposite materials, the rational control of dispersion and the improvement of interfacial strength remain challenging. Herein we propose the tuning of the interface between CNF and high-density polyethylene by the design of polymer dispersants on the basis of surface free energy and the glass transition temperature. The former is related to the wettability against the polymer matrix and is therefore critical to the dispersion of CNF whereas the latter is related to the interfacial strength between CNF and HDPE. As a result of this investigation, we discovered a suitable dispersant for CNFs, poly(dicyclopentenyloxyethyl methacrylate)-block-poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate), which played a pivotal role in achieving both a uniform dispersion of CNF and greatly improved mechanical properties, including a 4-fold increase of the Young's modulus over that of neat HDPE with 10 wt % CNF loading.

Explaining the Exceptional Wet Integrity of Transparent Cellulose Nanofibril Films in the Presence of Multivalent Ions—Suitable Substrates for Biointerfaces

“…A fair comparison for this composite material would be high density polyethylene, which is used in, e.g., pipes and bottles and has a modulus of 1.1 GPa and a yield strength of 26 MPa at 10% elongation . This suggests that the application range of CNF materials can be extended into areas where the sensitivity to water has previously been considered a problem.…”

Waste brewed tea leaf derived cellulose nanofiber reinforced fully bio-based waterborne polyester nanocomposite as an environmentally benign material

“…The thermosetting nanocomposites exhibited improved tensile strength from 13.71 MPa to 22.33 MPa (62% increment) with the highest loading of 1 weight% of CNF which is far better result compared to the previously reported literature containing more amount (weight%) of nanomaterial. 35,36 The fabricated thermosets also followed an increasing pattern for the elongation at break (exibility) with increase in CNF content. This can be attributed to the intricate architecture of the fabricated nanocomposite thermosets having extensive number of primary and secondary interactions which opens up during the time of elongation under the direction of applied force.…”

Compatibilization of polypropylene/poly(glycolic acid) blend with maleated poe/attapulgite hybrid compatibilizer: Evaluation of mechanical, thermal, rheological, and morphological characteristics

“…The surface functionalization of ATP has been confirmed the ideal approach to optimize its dispersity in the hydrophobic polymer matrix. Thus, the inorganic structure of fibrous ATP can create a nanoreinforcement effect, and the surface‐grafted organic component can promote the compatibility between the polymer blends . Compared with the short grafted chains, the long ones should be more effective to entangle with the polymer matrix and reduce the interfacial tension, especially the surface‐grafted chains with reactive functional groups .…”

“…Thus, the inorganic structure of fibrous ATP can create a nanoreinforcement effect, and the surface-grafted organic component can promote the compatibility between the polymer blends. [32][33][34] Compared with the short grafted chains, the long ones should be more effective to entangle with the polymer matrix and reduce the interfacial tension, especially the surface-grafted chains with reactive functional groups. [35,36] Accordingly, it can be inferred that an organic-inorganic hybrid compatibilizer that can integrate the efficacies of inorganic nanoparticles and polymeric ones, seems to be more attractive in the compatibilization of immiscible polar-nonpolar polymer blends.…”