pps proceeding - Abstract Preview
pps proceeding
Symposium: S02 - Nanocomposites and filled Polymers
Poster Presentation
 
 

Non-isothermal Crystallization Kinetics of Carbonaceous Nanofiller Reinforced Poly(butylene succinate) Nanocomposite

Filizgök Selen (1), Kodal Mehmet (2)*, Özkoç Güralp (2)

(1) Kocaeli Provincial Directorate of Environment and Urbanization - Kocaeli - Turkey, (2) Kocaeli University - Kocaeli - Turkey

In the recent years, biodegradable products have raised great interest since the non-biodegradability of the commercially available plastics has caused many environmental problems associated with their solid waste pollution. Poly(butylene succinate) (PBS), a biodegradable biopolyester, has many applications such as food packaging, mulch films, nonwovens, fiber/textile, consumer goods, electrics and electronics, automotive interior and others. In this study, we have focused on the influence of the carbon-based nanofillers (carbon nanotubes (CNT) and fullerene (F)) on the non-isothermal crystallization kinetis of poly(butylene succinate). Biodegradable PBS composites based on carbonaceous nanofiller containing 0.5 and 1.0 wt % nanoparticles were prepared by melt compounding in a Xplore microcompounder. The data for non-isothermal crystallization kinetics studies were obtained using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The combined Avrami-Ozawa method could adequately describe the primary stage of non-isothermal crystallization kinetics of the neat PBS and PBS nanocomposites. The spherulitic morphology and growth were observed with hot stage polorized optical microscopy at 95 °C. The structure of nanocomposites in the nanometer scale was characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations. The results indicated that the nanocomposite samples exhibited enhanced crystallinity and nucleation density significantly, along with smaller spherulite size. There was a strong dependence of the rate of crystallization and extent of crystallinity of PBS on nanofiller loading and its shape. CNTs were found to be more effective nucleating agent for PBS under experimental conditions. Keywords: Poly(butylene succinate), carbonaceous nanofiller, nonisothermal crystallization kinetics