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Novel blends from agave fibers and poly(methyl methacrylate)
Author(s) -
Koschella Andreas,
Heinze Thomas,
Rivera Armenta Jose Luis,
Mendoza Martinez Ana Maria
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
macromolecular symposia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.257
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1521-3900
pISSN - 1022-1360
DOI - 10.1002/masy.200350720
Subject(s) - agave , materials science , grafting , fiber , methyl methacrylate , biopolymer , fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , cellulose , synthetic fiber , polymer , poly(methyl methacrylate) , polymer chemistry , polymer blend , composite material , chemical engineering , polymerization , copolymer , archaeology , engineering , history
Abstract Cellulose‐rich fibers were isolated from Agave lechuguilla (AL) and Agave fourcroydes (AF) growing in the Mexican northeast. These fibers are a valuable feedstock for the preparation of blends with synthetic polymers like poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA. Blends of different types of agave fibers (dewaxed, mercerized, and grafted) and PMMA were prepared and investigated by means of tension measurements and dynamic mechanical analysis. The fiber‐containing blends are more stable than the plain PMMA. Surprisingly, the mechanical stability of the blends is practically independent of the pretreatment of the fibers. Methyl methacrylate (MMA) was grafted onto the biopolymer fibers initiated by the cerammonium nitrate redox initiator. Grafting yields of 26.5% were realized with fibers from AL while up to 75.8% MMA was grafted onto fibers from AF. The materials were characterized by means of FTIR spectroscopy and DSC.