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Improving the thermal and mechanical properties of poly(propylene carbonate) by incorporating functionalized graphite oxide
Author(s) -
Bian J.,
Wei X.W.,
Gong S. J.,
Zhang H.,
Guan Z. P.
Publication year - 2011
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.34897
Subject(s) - materials science , propylene carbonate , composite material , polycarbonate , thermal stability , graphite , graphite oxide , glass transition , thermogravimetric analysis , scanning electron microscope , dynamic mechanical analysis , ultimate tensile strength , nanocomposite , polymer , chemical engineering , chemistry , electrode , engineering , electrochemistry
Abstract 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