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Thermally stable low‐density polyethylene/polyhydroxybutyrate pairs: Synergy between organomodified nanoclay and LDPE ‐ g ‐ MAH
Author(s) -
Karami Samaneh,
Ahmadi Zahed,
Nazockdast Hossein,
Rabolt John F.,
Noda Isao,
Chase D. Bruce
Publication year - 2018
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.45922
Subject(s) - low density polyethylene , organoclay , materials science , thermal stability , polyhydroxybutyrate , nanocomposite , montmorillonite , polyethylene , thermogravimetric analysis , maleic anhydride , composite material , chemical engineering , polymer chemistry , polymer , copolymer , biology , bacteria , engineering , genetics
Nanocomposites of low‐density polyethylene/polyhydroxybutyrate (LDPE/PHB) containing organomodified montmorillonite (OMMT) and/or LDPE grafted maleic anhydride (LDPE‐ g ‐MAH) were prepared with a wide range of composition ratios using a vertical co‐rotating twin‐screw microCompounder. To infer the effect of OMMT and LDPE‐ g ‐MAH on the thermal stability of prepared nanocomposites, all samples were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis while changing clay and compatibilizer contents. Accordingly, two commonly used kinetic models (Coats–Redfern and Horowitz–Metzger) were employed to correlate the thermal stability of the samples with kinetic parameters, including activation energy and pre‐exponential factor. Furthermore, morphological features of LDPE/PHB in the presence or absence of OMMT and LDPE‐ g ‐MAH were studied using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction analysis. It was found that for a specific OMMT composition ratio (1 wt %), the thermal stability is enhanced due to an exfoliated structure. However, for samples containing more organoclay (>=3 wt %), the thermal stability was reduced showing the competition between the barrier effect of organoclay platelets and the catalyzing effect of ammonium salts. Moreover, when using LDPE‐ g ‐MAH as compatibilizer, it acted as a good coupling agent in all compositions in LDPE major phase systems in contrast to PHB major phase samples. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2018 , 135 , 45922.