Thermal stability, mechanical and adsorption resistant properties of HDPE/PEG/Clay nanocomposites on exposure to electron beam

Abstract

Abstract:The Influence of electron beam on behaviors of high density polyethylene/poly(ethylene glycol)/organoclay nanocomposites has been studied. Nanocomposite compounds were prepared by melt intercalation method. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transition electron microscopy (TEM) revealed the combination of nanocomposite morphology. Thermal and mechanical properties of nanocomposites were studied by using Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Young's modulus, tensile strength and hardness tests. The results show that at 500 KGy dose of irradiation the Young's modulus and tensile strength values have been enhanced in comparison with pure blend by cross-linking and the surface hardness of samples raises by increasing the clay content The samples with the clay content of 5 wt% in the matrix with 500KGy dose of irradiation have shown satisfactory thermal resistance. The irradiation at high levels has degraded the nanocomposites and an optimum dose must be employed to enhance their properties. The presence of poly(ethylene glycol) as a compatibilizer has improved the dispersion of clay layers into the matrix and has enhanced the mechanical properties and thermal resistance of nanocomposites. The presence of the clay in the matrix has increased the adsorption amount of xylene and toluene into the bulk of nanocomposites and the irradiation has decreased this capacity by the dose level.

Irradiation of poly(vinyl ester)/clay nanocomposites

“…This phenomenon can lead to enhancing the physical properties of specimens. 20,22 However, for all samples, degradation due to higher irradiation levels above 500 kGy overcomes the cross-linking effect so that the tensile strength decreases. The same trend is observed for Young's modulus.…”

“…18,19 The effect of electron beam irradiation on thermal and mechanical properties of some polymer/clay nanocomposites has recently been investigated. [20][21][22] Poly(vinyl ester)/clay nanocomposites have also been studied for their thermal [23][24][25] and mechanical properties, 23 but their properties in exposure of irradiation have not been previously addressed. However, recently, gamma irradiation influence by microwave on vinyl ester composites such as poly(vinyl ester)/ceramic (hollow spheres) composites 26 has been absorbing particular attention.…”

Mechanical and barrier properties of copolyester-nanoclay composites

“…Table 1 shows considerable improvement in crystalline fraction for 0.5 wt% nanoclay filled PET-IP. This could be possibly due to the nucleation effect of the nanoclay during processing [20,21]. The crystalline fractions were reduced at higher nanoclay content ( ≥ 1 wt%), possibly due to the reduced Brought to you by | Western University Authenticated Download Date | 6/9/15 3:26 AM nucleation effect.…”