The synergistic effect of boron nitride particle and die on the capillary extrusion processability of mLDPE

The synergistic effects of boron nitride (BN) powder and die on the rheology and processability of metallocene‐catalyzed low density polyethylene (mLDPE) were investigated. The processability in the extrusion process is closely related to the interfacial properties between the polymer melts and the die wall. BN powder was added to mLDPE to reduce the friction coefficient and surface energy. Adding 0.5 wt% BN powder to mLDPE was very effective in improving the processability and the extrudate appearance. To study the effect of die surface property, three different dies were applied in capillary extrusion. One was conventional tungsten carbide (TC) die, and the others were hot‐pressed BN (hpBN) die and hot‐pressed BN composite (hpBNC) die. The applications of these BN dies were quite effective in delaying surface melt fracture (sharkskin) and postponing gross melt fracture to higher shear rate compared to the TC die. These improvements result from the fact that BN dies reduce the wall shear stress significantly and promote slip. The synergistic effect of processability could be obtained when both BN powder and hpBN die were used together.     

Vitamin A microencapsulation within poly(methyl methacrylate)‐g‐polyethylenimine microspheres: Localized proton buffering effect on vitamin A stability

To stabilize vitamin A in a cosmetic/dermatological formulation, we present here a new encapsulation method based on polymer microspheres having a localized “proton‐buffering” capacity. Poly(methyl methacrylate)‐g‐polyethylenimine (PMMA‐g‐PEI) was prepared by direct condensation grafting of PEI onto poly(methyl methacrylate‐co‐methyl acrylic acid). The reaction was confirmed by FT‐IR analysis showing the amide vibration at 1,550 cm^?1. Elemental analysis indicated that the weight content of the grafted PEI was 1.6% (w/w). Vitamin A was encapsulated into PMMA‐g‐PEI microspheres by using an oil‐in‐water (O/W) single emulsion method. The presence of PEI moiety dramatically improved the chemical stability of vitamin A in microspheres. Vitamin A encapsulated within PMMA‐g‐PEI microspheres maintained 91% of its initial activity after 30‐day incubation at 40°C, while only maintaining 60% within plain PMMA microspheres. This study demonstrates that proton‐buffering within hydrophobic polymer matrix is a useful strategy for stabilizing “acid‐labile” active ingredients. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 92: 517–522, 2004     

Statistical properties of interparticle/void distance for amorphous plastics toughening

Statistical properties of interparticle/void distance (ID) for various particle/void and dispersion types are studied in relation with toughening of plastics using computer‐generated three‐dimensional models. Particle/void size groups adopted were either of constant diameter or of log‐normal distribution. Particles/voids were dispersed at uniform‐random or flocculated with multiple clusters. It was found that IDs are (a) of approximately Gaussian distribution for particles/voids of either a constant diameter or a log‐normal distribution, when they are dispersed at uniform‐random, but (b) not of Gaussian distribution for particle/void sizes of bimodal log‐normal distribution, nor for flocculated log‐normal distribution of particles/voids dispersed with multiple clusters. It was also found that the degree of ID uniformity for a single group of log‐normally sized particles/voids is not sensitive to standard deviation of particle/void size. Mixing effect on ID properties using two groups of log‐normally distributed particles/voids with similar mean particle/void diameters was simulated. It was found that, when a significant amount (36 vol %) of particles/voids of a small mean and standard deviation of ID was mixed with a group of particles/voids of a large mean and standard deviation of ID, mean and standard deviation of ID for the mixture were not substantially lower than those of the group of particles/voids of the large mean and standard deviation of ID. It was also found that the degree of ID uniformity for the mixture of the two groups was lower than those of individual groups, indicating that the mixing has deleterious effect on toughening. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 4256–4262, 2006     

Manufacturing and foaming of high melt viscosity of polypropylene by using electron beam radiation technology

The high melt viscosity of polypropylene was studied by grafting bifunctional monomers, 1,6‐hexanediol diacrylate (HDDA) and tripropylene glycol diacrylate (TPGDA), onto homopolypropylene (HPP) and random ter‐polypropylene (RTPP) under electron‐beam irradiation. Creation of the high‐melt‐viscosity polypropylene was possible at low radiation dosage and low monomer content, under a prohibition of both radiation degradation and homopolymerization. TPGDA monomer was more effective in increasing the melt viscosity of HPP compared with RTPP, whereas HDDA monomer was more effective for enhancing the melt viscosity of RTPP. Such different effects of monomers on melt viscosity may arise from different monomer structures, namely, TPGDA has additional three methyl groups, but HDDA has no methyl groups. Electron‐beam radiation technology, on an increase of the melt viscosity, was much more effective in HPP than RTPP, when compared with virgin polymers. Modified RTPP and HPP with high melt viscosity were capable of foaming with numerous fine cells, of which the modified HPP with 1.5 mmol TPGDA and 0.5 kGy could create more spherical foam cells and its bending strength was 1.5 times more than that of the foamed RTPP. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 46:431–437, 2006. © 2006 Society of Plastics Engineers.     

Preparation and properties of polyimide/silica hybrid composites based on polymer‐modified colloidal silica

A new type of polyimide/silica (PI/SiO₂) hybrid composite films was prepared by blending polymer‐modified colloidal silica with the semiflexible polyimide. Polyimide was solution‐imidized at higher temperature than the glass transition temperature (T_g) using 3,3′,4,4′‐biphenyltetracarboxylic dianhydride (BPDA) and 4,4′‐diaminodiphenyl ether (ODA). The morphological observation on the prepared hybrid films by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) pointed to the existence of miscible organic–inorganic phase, which resulted in improved mechanical properties compared with pure PI. The incorporation of the silica structures in the PI matrix also increased both T_g and thermal stability of the resulting films. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 100: 2053–2061, 2006     

Electrochemical properties of boron-carbon-nitride films formed by magnetron sputtering

The electrochemical behavior of B_1.0C_2.4N_1.0 thin film was investigated in acidic, neutral and alkaline solutions. The anodic polarization curve of the film in 1 M NaOH showed the anodic dissolution of the film. The curve of the film in 1 M HCl showed no anodic dissolution. The cathodic polarization curve in 1 M NaCl showed shift to a negative potential side, but the anodic polarization curve was the same as that of Pt. The anodic dissolution in 1 M NaOH depended on potentials, that is, no anodic dissolution was recognized in a potential range of −0.2 to 0.1 V but the dissolution rate increased with increasing potential in a range of 0.1-0.6 V. The anodic current density of the film is directly proportional to the dissolution rate at potentials higher than 0.1 V. The dissolution rate of the film was increased with increasing solution pH.     

On the modeling of electro-hydrodynamic flow in a wire-plate electrostatic precipitator

Modeling of the flow velocity fields for the electrohydrodynamic (EHD) flow in a wire-to-plate type electrostatic precipitator (ESP) was achieved. Solutions of the steady, two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations have been computed. The equations were solved in the conservative finite-difference form on a fine uniform rectilinear grid of sufficient resolution to accurately capture the momentum boundary layers. The numerical procedure for differential equations was used by SIMPLEST [Michel, 2002], a derivative of Patankar’s SIMPLE algorithm, to bring rapid convergence. The Phoenics (Version 3.5.1) CFD code, coupled with Poisson’s and ion transport equations and electric body force in the momentum equation, developed in this study, was used for the numerical simulation. From calculations for the flow employing different flow models, the Chen-Kimk-ε turbulent model appeared to be the most appropriate choice to obtain a quantitative image of the resulting mean flow field and downstream wake flow of the rear wire, although this was obtained from a qualitative analysis due to the lack of experimental verification. The flow velocity field pattern showed a strong EHD secondary flow, which was clearly visible in the downstream regions of the corona wire despite the low Reynolds number for the electrode (Re_CW=12.4). Secondary flow vortices were also caused by the EHD with increases in the discharge current     

Desulfurization in a plate-type gas-lift photobioreactor using light emitting diodes

Hydrogen sulfide gas was removed in a 2-dimensional gas-lift reactor by the photosynthetic microorganismChlorobium thiosulfatophilum using light emitting diodes (LEDs) as a light source. LEDs saved light energy by 99% compared with the incandescent light source. The plate-type gas-lift reactor removed hydrogen sulfide five times better per unit mg of protein, and performed two times better in the maximum performance per unit luminous flux, compared with cylindrical fermentors.     

Polymer gel electrolytes prepared from P(EG‐co‐PG) and their nanocomposites using organically modified montmorillonite

Polymer gel electrolytes were prepared by thermal crosslinking reaction of a series of acrylic end‐capped poly(ethylene glycol) and poly(propylene glycol) [P(EG‐co‐PG)] having various geometries and molecular weights. Acrylic end‐capped prepolymers were prepared by the esterification of low molecular weight (M_n: 1900–5000) P(EG‐co‐PG) with acrylic acid. The linear increase in the ionic conductivity of polymer gel electrolyte films was observed with increasing temperature. The increase in the conductivity was also monitored by increasing the molecular weight of precursor polymer. Nanocomposite electrolytes were prepared by the addition of 5 wt % of organically modified layered silicate (montmorillonite) into the gel polymer electrolytes. The enhancement of the ionic conductivity as well as mechanical properties was observed in the nanocomposite systems. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 894–899, 2004     

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis and experimental study for toxic hazardous waste destruction in the cavity incinerator

We undertook numerical and experimental studies to develop a better incineration method for the destruction of CC1₄. A phenomenological model for the turbulent reaction of CC1₄, including a flame inhibition feature, has been successfully incorporated into a commercial code, simulating the incineration processes of this compound. The gaseous flow solution was obtained using SIMPLEST, a derivative of Patankar’s SIMPLE algorithm, with a k-ε turbulence model. A modified fast chemistry turbulent reaction model was developed to describe the flame inhibition due to the presence of CC1₄, considering the corresponding burning velocity data of these mixtures. An experiment was carried out on a 5.2 kW laboratory scale, transportable, cavity-type incinerator, which warrants a sufficient residence time and effective turbulent mixing by the formation of a strong recirculation region in a combustor. To this end, the specific configuration of the incinerator was manufactured to consist of two opposing jets and a rearward facing step. The calculated data were in close agreement with the experimental data for the concentrations of major species, such as CCI₄ and HCl, together with the temperature profiles. The experimental test gave the desired DRE of above 99.99%.