A statistical approach to develop biocomposites from epoxy resin,poly(furfuryl alcohol), poly(propylene carbonate), and biochar

Epoxy composites are typically petroleum based and prone to fracture. Increasing concerns about climate change have motivated scientists to find green alternatives. To address both drawbacks, effect of addition of poly(propylene carbonate) polyol (PPC), a polyol derived from carbon dioxide, and biochar, a byproduct of pyrolysis in an epoxy/poly(furfuryl alcohol) (PFA) network was studied. It is hypothesized that addition of PPC will increase impact strength while addition of inexpensive biochar will offset cost of final product. In addition, incorporation of PFA, PPC, and biochar can increase biobased content of thermoset. A statistical approach was used to find a systematic correlation between constituent contents and mechanical properties of biocomposites. Mixture design of experiment and backward elimination regression were used to model mechanical properties of biocomposites. The fitted models showed a great ability to predict mechanical properties of new formulations. Addition of 10% biochar increased tensile strength and toughness by 13% and 34%, respectively. Biochar also increased modulus while it had adverse effect on impact strength. Promising effect of PPC on toughening of matrix was proved and it was found that addition of 30% of PPC increased impact strength by fivefolds. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017 , 134, 45307.     

Orientation microstructure and properties of poly(propylene carbonate)/poly(butylene succinate) blend films

The blends of high molecular weight poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) and poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) were melt blended using triphenylmethane triisocyanate (TTI) as a reactive coupling agent. TTI also serves as a compatibilizer for the blends of PPC and PBS. The blend containing 0.36 wt % TTI showed that the optimal mechanical properties were, therefore, calendared into films with different degrees of orientation. The calendering condition, degree of orientation, morphologies, mechanical properties, crystallization, and thermal behaviors of the films were investigated using wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, tensile testing, and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques. The result showed that the as‐made films exhibited obvious orientation in machine direction (MD). Both tensile strength in MD and the tear strength in transverse direction (TD) increased with increasing the degree of orientation. The orientation of the film also increased the crystallinity and improved the thermal properties of the PPC/PBS blend films. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013     

Study on nitrile-butadiene rubber/poly(propylene carbonate) elastomer as coupling agent of poly (vinyl chloride)/poly (propylene carbonate) blends. I. Effect on mechanical properties of blends

Nitrile-butadiene rubber/poly(propylene carbonate) (NBR-PPC) elastomer was studied as a coupling agent of the blends of poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) with poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC). It greatly improved the PVC/PPC system mechanical properties that were dependent on the amount and composition of the coupling agent. When the coupling agent consisted of a 70/30 ratio of NBR/PPC (in which NBR had 34% nitrile content) and 2.5 phr of benzoyl peroxide (BPO) initiator and underwent a prevulcanization, the blends of PVC/PPC displayed excellent mechanical properties by adding 8 phr of the coupling agent. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 63: 1107–1111, 1997     

Improving the thermal and mechanical properties of poly(propylene carbonate) by incorporating functionalized graphite oxide

Poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) is a new biodegradable aliphatic polycarbonate. However, the poor thermal stability, low glass transition temperatures (T_g), and relatively low mechanical property have limited its applications. To improve the thermal and mechanical properties of PPC, functionalized graphite oxide (MGO) was synthesized and mixed with PPC by a solution intercalation method to produce MGO/PPC composites. A uniform structure of MGO/PPC composites was confirmed by X‐ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope. The thermal and mechanical properties of MGO/PPC composites were investigated by thermal gravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetric, dynamic mechanical analysis, and electronic tensile tester. Due to the nanometer‐sized dispersion of layered graphite in polymer matrix, MGO/PPC composites exhibit improved thermal and mechanical properties than pure PPC. When the MGO content is 3.0 wt %, the MGO/PPC composites shows the best thermal and mechanical properties. These results indicate that nanocomposition is an efficient and convenient method to improve the properties of PPC. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

FTIR study of poly(propylene carbonate)/bisphenol A blends

A systematic investigation by FTIR spectroscopy was undertaken on blends of poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) and bisphenol A (BPA). It provided direct evidence of the hydrogen bond (H‐bond) between BPA O? H groups and PPC C?O groups. Using a curve‐fitting method, qualitative as well as quantitative information concerning this H‐bond interaction was obtained. The inter‐H‐bond in PPC/BPA blends was weaker than the self‐H‐bond in BPA. The absorptivities of the free and the H‐bonded C?O groups were nearly equal. The fraction of H‐bonded C?O in the blends increased with BPA content and leveled off at a value close to 40 %. Finally, FTIR–temperature measurements of pure PPC and a representative blend were reported: by monitoring the peak areas of C?O absorptions, the dissociation of the inter‐H‐bonds and the thermal degradation of PPC were observed. It revealed that the presence of BPA clearly retarded the thermal degradation of PPC. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry     

CO_2/环氧丙烷共聚合成聚碳酸亚丙酯多元醇

利用双金属氰化物作为催化剂,催化CO2/环氧丙烷调节共聚制备聚碳酸亚丙酯多元醇(PPC),详细考察了催化剂用量、相对分子质量调节剂及其用量、CO2用量等对聚合的影响.研究发现PPC的相对分子质量与相对分子质量调节剂的用量成线性关系,可以根据需要合成具有规定相对分子质量的PPC树脂.最后提出聚合过程中碳酸丙烯酯可能按照解拉链的方式生成.     

Toughening of poly(propylene carbonate) by hyperbranched poly(ester‐amide) via hydrogen bonding interaction

Poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) is a biodegradable alternative copolymer of propylene oxide and carbon dioxide. As an amorphous polymer with lower glass transition temperature around 35 °C, PPC shows poor mechanical performance in that it becomes brittle below 20 °C and its dimensional stability deteriorates above 40 °C; thus toughening of PPC is urgently needed. Here we describe a biodegradable hyperbranched poly(ester‐amide) (HBP) that is suitable for this purpose. Compared with pure PPC, the PPC/HBP blend with 2.5 wt% HBP loading showed a 51 °C increase in thermal decomposition temperature and a 100% increase in elongation at break, whilst the corresponding tensile strength remained as high as 45 MPa and tensile modulus showed no obvious decrease. Crazing as well as cavitation was observed in the scanning electron microscopy images of the blends, which provided good evidence for the toughening mechanism of PPC. The intermolecular hydrogen bonding interaction confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectral analysis proved to be the reason for the toughening phenomenon. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

离子交换树脂催化合成碳酸亚丙酯

碘型阴离子交换树脂在某些偶极非质子性溶剂的作用下，能有效地催化ＣＯ２与环氧丙烷合成碳酸亚丙酯，重复使用时仍能保持较高的催化活性。     

Transparent nanocomposites with enhanced performances from poly(propylene carbonate) and silica

In this study, silica nanoparticles with a refractive index matching PPC and a diameter smaller than the visible light wavelength were chosen to prepare enhanced PPC/silica nanocomposites by a simple melt compounding method. The result exhibited all the nanocomposites possessed excellent transparency (about 90%), even in the nanocomposite with a silica content of 10 wt%. For PPC/silica nanocomposites, the percolation threshold was determined to be 7.5 wt% based on the dynamic rheological behavior and percolation theory. Moreover, the overall performance of the PPC-based nanocomposite with a silica content of 7.5% is the best. The optimal nanocomposite showed a Young's modulus of 3792 MPa, a yield strength of 46.5 MPa, a storage modulus of 3812 MPa and a highest temperature at maximum weight-loss rate (T_max, 309°C). These characteristics are very important for potential commodity applications of PPC.     

Effects of poly(propylene carbonate) additive prepared from carbon dioxide on the tensile properties of polypropylene

We investigated the effect of a rubbery poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) additive on the tensile properties of isotactic polypropylene (iPP). PPC materials were produced from carbon dioxide gas. Although the elongation of iPP was reduced at higher elongation speeds, PPC addition improved the elongation at break at higher elongation speeds. iPP/PPC blends showed a high drawability while maintaining a high stress level. The failure mechanisms at high elongation speeds were different between the iPP and iPP/PPC samples. Craze‐like voids appeared along the stretching direction for pure iPP, whereas the PPC additive yielded craze‐like voids that were perpendicular to the stretching direction. The addition of PPC doped with carbon nanodots enhanced the yield toughness of iPP at high elongation speeds. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017 , 134, 45266.     

端氨基苯基聚丙二醇的合成及其环氧树脂胶粘剂的研究

合成并表征了端氨基苯基聚丙二醇(APPPG),并用它作为固化剂与环氧树脂组成了综合力学性能好的胶粘剂。研究了合成APPPG的工艺条件、以及APPPG的用量和试件表面处理工艺对胶粘剂粘结性能的影响。结果表明:当APPPG与E-44环氧树脂的质量比约为1时,组成的胶粘剂有最佳的综合力学性能;用0号纱布打磨试件表面制成的试样,其剥离强度最高。     

聚乙基醚碳酸酯二醇增韧环氧树脂

八成以羟基封端的脂肪族聚碳酸酯－聚惭基醚碳酸酯二醇（ＰＥＥＣＤ）,并用于环氧（ＥＰ）树脂的增韧。探讨了ＰＥＥＣＤ的相对分子质量、加入量等因素对增韧效果的影响。通过红外光谱分析、扫描电镜、差示扫描最热分析以及力学性能测试等方法研究了增韧ＥＰ的结构与性能的关系。     

Investigation on the microstructure and the electric property of poly(propylene)/chlorinated poly(propylene)/poly(aniline) composites

The article presents results of studies on composites made from poly(propylene) (PP) modified with poly(aniline) (PANI) doped with dodecylbenzene sulfonic acid (DBSA) and chlorinated poly(propylene) (CPP). The volume resistivity of PP/CPP/PANI composites was detected, and the results show that the volume resistivity decreases with increasing CPP content, and there exists a minimum volume resistivity. Effects of CPP on the microstructure and crystalline structure of the PP/CPP/PANI composites and the relationship between the effects and the electric property were carefully analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and wide angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD). The method that the specimens of SEM are polished is appropriate to investigate the morphology of conducting polymer composites. The obtained results illuminate that the area of conducting parts and insulating parts obtained from the digital analysis of the SEM image is obviously influenced by the CPP content, the parameters of the lamellar‐like structure are immediately related to CPP content and denote the dispersion of PANI‐DBSA, and the percent crystallinity and mean crystal size of PP are directly correlated with the CPP content. The increasing area of conducting parts, the increasement of layer distance, the decreasement of size and layer number of the lamellar‐like structure of PANI‐DBSA, and the increasement of the percent crystallinity and mean crystal size of PP are beneficial to the improvement of the conductive property of PP/CPP/PANI composites. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

聚甲基乙撑碳酸酯的研究进展

综述了聚甲基乙撑碳酸酯(PPC)的合成、改性等方面的研究进展,并对其市场应用前景进行了分析。合成PPC的催化体系主要有锌催化剂、双金属催化剂、稀土催化体系、Salen(MX)催化剂、金属卟啉类催化剂等,其中锌类催化剂催化活性最高,Salen（MX）复合物的二元或双官能团催化体系效率最高。PPC的改性方法主要有交联共聚、溶液共混和熔融共混。最后,指出PPC在我国具有广阔的市场前景。     

熔融插层法制备累托石/聚碳酸亚丙酯纳米复合材料的研究

采用熔融插层法制备了有机化累托石/聚碳酸亚丙酯纳米复合材料,通过X射线衍射、原子力显微镜、热重分析法测试了复合材料的结构与热性能。结果表明:聚碳酸亚丙酯能插层于累托石片层中,累托石/聚碳酸亚丙酯纳米复合材料的耐热性有了很大程度的提高。     

Partially miscible poly(lactic acid)‐ blend‐poly(propylene carbonate) filled with carbon black as conductive polymer composite

BACKGROUND: Conductive polymer composites (CPCs) can be obtained by filling polymer matrices with electrically conductive particles, and have a wide variety of potential applications. In the work reported, the biodegradable polymer poly(lactic acid) (PLA) as a partially miscible blend with poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) was used as a polymer matrix. Carbon black (CB) was used as the conducting filler. RESULTS: Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed interactions between matrix and CB filler; this interaction was stronger in PPC‐blend‐CB than in PLA‐blend‐CB composites. A rheology study showed that low‐viscosity PPC could improve the fluidity of the CPCs, but decrease that of CB. With increasing CB content, the enforcement effect, storage modulus and glass transition temperature increased, but the elongation at break decreased. CPCs exhibited the lowest electrical percolation thresholds of 1.39 vol.% CB when the content of PPC in PLA‐blend‐PPC was 40 wt%. The conductivity of CPCs containing 5.33 vol.% CB and 40 wt% PPC reached 1.57 S cm^?1. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that CB exhibits a preference for dispersion in the low‐viscosity phase (PPC) of the multiphase matrix. CONCLUSION: In the presence of CB, partially miscible PLA‐blend‐PPC could form multi‐percolation CPCs. Moreover, the combination of PLA and PPC with CB broadens novel application of both renewable polymers and CPCs. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

聚碳酸亚丙酯/热塑性氧化淀粉的流变、形态和性能

采用熔融共混的方法制备了马来酸酐接枝聚碳酸亚丙酯(PPCMA)/热塑性淀粉(TPS)、PPCMA/热塑性氧化淀粉(TPOS)和PPCMA/ DL-TPOS(铝酸酯预处理的TPOS)复合材料,研究淀粉的氧化以及偶联剂的加入对PPC复合材料流变、形态和性能的影响。加入淀粉后的PPC复合材料拉伸强度有较大提高,红外光谱结果显示淀粉和PPCMA之间形成了氢键作用,这可能是力学性能提高的主要原因;热塑性氧化淀粉与PPCMA基材的界面相容性提高,PPCMA/TPOS复合材料的力学性能、储能模量、损耗模量和复数黏度均高于PPCMA/TPS复合材料;铝酸酯对TPOS的预处理促进了TPOS在PPCMA中的分散,提高了复合材料的拉伸强度,在PPCMA/DL-TPOS体系中,当DL-TPOS含量为40%(质量分数)时拉伸强度达到最大值,与PPCMA相比,提高了4.6倍。     

Effects of epoxy resin on mechanical and thermal characteristics of poly(propylene oxide)/poly(butyl acrylate) networks

We report mechanical and thermal characteristics of a network composed of poly(propylene oxide) (PPG) and poly(butyl acrylate) crosslinked with tolylene diisocyanate. It was found that addition of about 4 wt % of an epoxy resin resulted in a higher mechanical toughness and less discoloration. Furthermore, it was found that the epoxy has a self‐restoration function against thermal degradation of the network. The reaction mechanism between the network and the epoxy was investigated with infrared spectroscopy and ¹³C‐NMR and the effect of the epoxy resin on the thermal stability and physical properties is discussed. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 77: 1886–1893, 2000     

Improved thermal stability and mechanical properties of poly(propylene carbonate) by reactive blending with maleic anhydride

To extend the application of a carbon dioxide sourced environmental friendly polymer: poly (propylene carbonate) (PPC), a small amount of maleic anhydride (MA) was melt blended to end‐cap with PPC to improve its thermal stability and mechanical properties. Thermal and mechanical properties of end‐capped PPC were investigated by TGA, GPC, mechanical test, and DMA. TGA and titration results demonstrate that PPC can be easily end‐capped with MA through simple melt blending. TGA results show that the thermal degradation temperature of PPC could be improved by around 140°C by adding MA. GPC measurement indicates that the molecular weight of PPC can be maintained after blending with MA, where pure PPC experiences a dramatic degradation in molecular weight during melt process. More importantly, the tensile strength of PPC after blending with MA was found to be nearly eight times higher than that of pure PPC. It has approached the mechanical properties of polyolefin polymers, indicating the possibility of replacing polyolefin polymers with PPC for low temperature applications. The method described here could be used to extend the applications of PPC and fight against the well known global warming problem. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Nanocomposites of poly(propylene carbonate) reinforced with cellulose nanocrystals via sol‐gel process

Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) organogels were first produced from aqueous dispersion through solvent exchange of CNCs to acetone via a simple sol‐gel process. After mixing the organogels with poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) in dimethylformamide followed by solution casting, green nanocomposites were obtained with CNCs well dispersed in PPC polymer matrix which was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy observations. Differential scanning calorimeter analysis revealed that glass transition temperature of the nanocomposites was slightly increased from 34.0 to 37.4°C. Tensile tests indicated that both yield strength and Young's modulus of CNCs/PPC nanocomposites were doubled by adding 10 wt % CNCs. However, poor thermal stability of PPC occurred after incorporating with CNCs due to the thermo‐sensitive sulfate groups located on the surface of CNCs. Furthermore, PPC became more hydrophilic because of the inclusion of CNCs according to the water contact angle measurement. The enhanced mechanical and hydrophilic properties, coupled with the inherent superior biocompatibility and degradability, offered CNCs/PPC composites potential application in biomedical fields. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40832.