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Preparation and mechanical properties of composite of fibrous cellulose and maleated polyethylene
Author(s) -
Zhang Farao,
Endo Takashi,
Qiu Wulin,
Yang Liqun,
Hirotsu Takahiro
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.10428
Subject(s) - materials science , composite number , ultimate tensile strength , composite material , compatibilization , maleic anhydride , polyethylene , cellulose , young's modulus , polymer , polymer blend , chemical engineering , copolymer , engineering
Abstract Fibrous cellulose and maleated polyethylene (FC–MPE) composites were prepared under melt mixing by maleation of polyethylene (PE) to obtain maleic anhydride (MA) grafted PE (MPE) and successive compounding of the resultant MPE with fibrous cellulose (FC). When increasing the content of added MA to 2 wt %, the grafting efficiency of MA decreases gradually to 84% and the grafted MA chains become longer. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveals strong adhesion of MPE to FC in the FC–MPE composite, which is probably due to the increased compatibility between MPE and FC, in contrast to no adhesion of unmaleated PE (UPE) to FC in the FC–UPE composite. This difference in interfacial structure between the FC–MPE and FC–UPE composites results in quite different mechanical properties for them. With an increase in the FC content to 60 wt %, the tensile strength of the FC–MPE composite increases significantly and reaches 125% that of pure PE. Furthermore, the larger Young's modulus, larger bending elastic modulus, and smaller elongation of the FC–MPE composite strongly indicate effective transfer of the high tensile strength and elasticity of FC to the MPE matrix through the strong adhesion between FC and MPE. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 84: 1971–1980, 2002; DOI 10.1002/app.10428