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A Novel Thermoformable Bionanocomposite Based on Cellulose Nanocrystal ‐graft‐ Poly( ε ‐caprolactone)
Author(s) -
Chen Guangjun,
Dufresne Alain,
Huang Jin,
Chang Peter R.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
macromolecular materials and engineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.913
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1439-2054
pISSN - 1438-7492
DOI - 10.1002/mame.200800261
Subject(s) - nanocrystal , materials science , microcrystalline cellulose , caprolactone , grafting , cellulose , polymer , wetting , chemical engineering , polymer chemistry , composite material , nanotechnology , copolymer , engineering
This is the first report on a thermoformable bionanocomposite based on a natural nanocrystal and formed by grafting long polymer chains onto the surface of microcrystalline cellulose. For the cellulose nanocrystal ‐graft‐ poly( ε‐ caprolactone), the “graft from” strategy contributed to long and dense “plasticizing” PCL tails onto the CN surface as the key of thermoforming. The grafted PCL chains shielded the hydrophilic surface of CN and, hence, showed high water‐resistance. Moreover, a strategy for developing new bionanocomposite materials based on natural nanocrystals has been presented.