Effect of graphene loading on thermomechanical properties of poly(vinyl alcohol)/starch blend

Polymer nanocomposites based on poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/starch blend and graphene were prepared by solution mixing and casting. Glycerol was used as a plasticizer and added in the starch dispersion. The uniform dispersion of graphene in water was achieved by using an Ultrasonicator Probe. The composites were characterized by FTIR, tensile properties, X‐ray diffraction (XRD), thermal analysis, and FE‐SEM studies. FTIR studies indicated probable hydrogen bonding interaction between the oxygen containing groups on graphene surface and the –OH groups in PVA and starch. Mechanical properties results showed that the optimum loading of graphene was 0.5 wt % in the blend. XRD studies indicated uniform dispersion of graphene in PVA/starch matrix upto 0.5 wt % loadings and further increase caused agglomeration. Thermal studies showed that the thermal stability of PVA increased and the crystallinity decreased in the presence of starch and graphene. FE‐SEM studies showed that incorporation of graphene increased the ductility of the composites. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 41827.     

Demand function estimate for residential water in Oman

Current subsidies to residential water users in Oman are estimated at USD 314 million/y. This study estimates the demand function for residential water in Muscat, Oman, for households living in villas. A two-stage least squares econometric model with lagged average water price was used with socio-economic variables. Price elasticity for residential water in Muscat was estimated as –2.10. This high price elasticity is explained by the large proportion of water used for outdoor purposes. This study indicates that it may be possible to manage water demand in Muscat through modifying the price of water and reforming subsidies for residential water.     

Stochastic model for living radical polymerisation of styrene initiated by epoxide radical ring opening

A stochastic model was developed to simulate the polymerisation kinetics and the detailed microstructure of the resulting polymers made by the living radical polymerisation of styrene initiated by epoxide radical ring opening. The model was used to predict monomer conversion, average molecular weight, polydispersity index, and molecular weight distribution as a function of polymerisation time. Simulations were used to explore the effects of rate constant values on chain microstructures and polymer properties and validated with experimental data published in the literature. It was found that some parameters, such as the exchange rate constant, have no significant effect on the polymerisation kinetics, whereas major effects were observed when other rate constants, such as the reduction rate constant, were changed.     

Effect of phenol functionalization of carbon nanotubes on properties of natural rubber nanocomposites

This paper reports the results of studies on the effect of phenol functionalization of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the mechanical and dynamic mechanical properties of natural rubber (NR) composites. Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) indicates characteristic peaks for ether and aromatic rings in the case of phenol functionalized CNT. Although differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) studies show no changes in the glass‐rubber transition temperature (T_g) of NR in the nanocomposites due to surface modification of CNT, dynamic mechanical studies show marginal shifting of T_g to higher temperature, the effect being pronounced in the case of functionalized CNT. Stress‐strain plots suggest an optimum loading of 5 phr CNT in NR formulations and the phenolic functionalization of CNT does not affect significantly the stress‐strain properties of the NR nanocomposites. The storage moduli register an increase in the presence of CNT and this increase is greater in the case of functionalized CNT. Loss tangent showed a decrease in the presence of CNT, and the effect is more pronounced in the case of phenol functionalized CNT. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) reveals that phenol functionalization causes improvement in dispersion of CNT in NR matrix. This is corroborated by the increase in electrical resistivity in the case of phenol functionalized CNT/NR composites. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Studies on compatibility of biodegradable starch/polyvinyl alcohol blends

Compatibility of starch/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) blends, prepared by solution cast method, is dependent on the blend composition. Crystallinity of the blend, as measured by X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), decreases with increase in starch content. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) shows that the broadness in the peak width at the degradation region increases with increase in starch content in the starch/PVA blend. Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) reveal that the broadness of the relaxation peaks is due to the partial compatibility of the glycerol plasticized starch/PVA blends. The tensile property decreases with increase in starch content and the 30/70 starch/PVA blend shows maximum ductility in respect to both the percentage of elongation and energy at break. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2012. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Dynamic Monte Carlo Simulation of Atom‐Transfer Radical Polymerization

Summary: A dynamic Monte Carlo model was developed to simulate atom‐transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The algorithm used to describe the polymerization includes activation, deactivation, propagation, chain transfer, and termination by combination and disproportionation reactions. Model probabilities are calculated from polymerization kinetic parameters and reactor conditions. The model was used to predict monomer conversion, average molecular weight, polydispersity and the complete molecular weight distribution at any polymerization time or monomer conversion. The model was validated with experimental results for styrene polymerization and compared with simulation results from a mathematical model that uses population balances and the method of moments. The simulations agree well with experimental and theoretical results reported in the literature. We also investigated the control volume size and number of iterations to reduce computation time while keeping an acceptable noise level in the Monte Carlo results.

Comparison of the chain length distribution of polystyrene made with ATRP and conventional free radical (CFR) polymerization at 50% conversion. The initiator to monomer ratios are 1:100 (ATRP left peak), 1:500 (ATRP right peak), and 1:1000 (CFR).     

Blind adaptive modulation systems for wireless channels with binary feedback

In this paper, we investigate the performance of a blind adaptive modulation scheme that does not require any channel knowledge and just uses binary feedback, thereby decreasing feedback load. Retransmission of erroneous packet is not considered. In particular, we present an analytical framework for the performance evaluation of a simple wireless system in terms of receiver and transmitter structure. The system requires no knowledge of the channel and relies on a binary feedback. Slow and fast Rayleigh fading channel conditions are considered. The paper includes the derivation of the closed‐form expressions of the spectral efficiency. In some cases, closed‐form expression for packet error rate (PER) are derived. Our results show relatively high PER but some applications can still operate in a satisfactory fashion in these conditions, such as voice communication. Using coded modulation with high coding gain and increasing the number of blocks per time slot decrease the PER even more. An advantage of this system is that it uses a low complexity receiver, which sends binary feedback. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Wadi natural aggregates in Western Saudi Arabia for use in Concrete

The engineering properties (physical and mechanical) of Wadi Al-Yamanyah natural aggregate were determined. In addition, correlations between these properties have been made. This Wadi is located in the central part of the western province of Saudi Arabia between Makkah and Taif. The aggregate along the Wadi was studied and five major rock units were identified namely granite, granodiorite, gneiss amphibole schist and andesite. These rocks were classified into three aggregate groups: basalt, granite and schist. Ninety aggregate samples were carefully collected and tested. The results of overall aggregate properties pointed out that Wadi Al-Yamanyah natural mixed aggregate is within the international and local specification limits and it is suitable for use in concrete. The estimated volume of natural aggregate in the Wadi is about 2 million m³. The engineering properties of individual aggregate groups were also determined. Basalt and schist groups, which represent about 65% of the Wadi natural aggregate, were of higher quality and low degree of alterations than the granite group. Direct and inverse relationships were found between some physical and mechanical properties for mixed natural aggregate of Wadi Al-Yamanyah with the exception of elongation index (I_E). It is recommended to use the derived equations, representing the best fit between the aggregate properties, with care and for rough estimation only.     

Silica‐supported (nBuCp)2ZrCl2: effect of catalyst active center distribution on ethylene–1‐hexene copolymerization

Metallocenes are a modern innovation in polyolefin catalysis research. Therefore, two supported metallocene catalysts—silica/MAO/(ⁿBuCp)₂ZrCl₂ (Catalyst 1) and silica/ⁿBuSnCl₃/MAO/(ⁿBuCp)₂ZrCl₂ (Catalyst 2), where MAO is methylaluminoxane—were synthesized, and subsequently used to prepare, without separate feeding of MAO, ethylene–1‐hexene Copolymer 1 and Copolymer 2, respectively. Fouling‐free copolymerization, catalyst kinetic stability and production of free‐flowing polymer particles (replicating the catalyst particle size distribution) confirmed the occurrence of heterogeneous catalysis. The catalyst active center distribution was modeled by deconvoluting the measured molecular weight distribution and copolymer composition distribution. Five different active center types were predicted for each catalyst, which was corroborated by successive self‐nucleation and annealing experiments, as well as by an extended X‐ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy report published in the literature. Hence, metallocenes impregnated particularly on an MAO‐pretreated support may be rightly envisioned to comprise an ensemble of isolated single sites that have varying coordination environments. This study shows how the active center distribution and the design of supported MAO anions affect copolymerization activity, polymerization mechanism and the resulting polymer microstructures. Catalyst 2 showed less copolymerization activity than Catalyst 1. Strong chain transfer and positive co‐monomer effect—both by 1‐hexene—were common. Each copolymer demonstrated vinyl, vinylidene and trans‐vinylene end groups, and compositional heterogeneity. All these findings were explained, as appropriate, considering the modeled active center distribution, MAO cage structure repeat units, proposed catalyst surface chemistry, segregation effects and the literature that concerns and supports this study. While doing so, new insights were obtained. Additionally, future research, along the direction of the present work, is recommended. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry