Reactive melt crosslinking of cellulose nanocrystals/poly(ε-caprolactone) for heat-shrinkable network
Journal article, 2022

Focusing on the challenge of non-biodegradable plastics replacement, we propose a design for peroxide-initiated crosslinking of biodegradable poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) and renewable cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) bionanocomposites. An industrially scalable water-assisted reactive melt-processing (REx) is studied to explore the hypothesis of synergy between simultaneous effects of water on improving CNC dispersion and boosting PCL branching/crosslinking. We demonstrate that the melt processing control enables the preparation of targeted thermoplastic/thermoset bionanocomposites with gel content up to ≈ 40 %, identified as the limit of their melt-processability. Structural characterization reveals that ≈ 70 wt% of the initial CNC content is irreversibly incorporated in a percolating network, enhancing the crosslinked bionanocomposites properties. The bionanocomposites' complex viscosity and elastic character increase with the gel content, thus improving PCL melt performance. Furthermore, the irreversible entrapment of CNCs in the 3D percolating network provides heat-shrinkability, indicating a potential of the reacted bionanocomposites for heat-triggered shape-memory.

Cellulose

Biocomposite

Creep

Reactive melt processing

Author

Angelica Avella

Chalmers, Industrial and Materials Science, Engineering Materials

Alexander Idström

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Applied Chemistry

Rosica Mincheva

Universite de Mons

Koyuru Nakayama

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Applied Chemistry

Wallenberg Wood Science Center (WWSC)

Lars Evenäs

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Applied Chemistry

Wallenberg Wood Science Center (WWSC)

Jean Marie Raquez

Universite de Mons

Giada Lo Re

Chalmers, Industrial and Materials Science, Engineering Materials

Wallenberg Wood Science Center (WWSC)

Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing

1359-835X (ISSN)

Vol. 163 107166

Subject Categories

Polymer Chemistry

Chemical Process Engineering

Polymer Technologies

DOI

10.1016/j.compositesa.2022.107166

More information

Latest update

10/25/2023