Hybrid biocomposites and particularly hybrid bionanocomposites are relatively recent additions to the composite family. Biocomposites are composite materials which include parts of biological origin. Hybridization is very useful because it makes it possible to tailor the composite properties according to the desired structure. This chapter deals with the preparation methods applied for PP-based hybrid biocomposites and bionanocomposites. The mechanical and thermal properties as well as the weathering properties and fire performance of various hybrid composites are summarized. The properties of hybrid biocomposites depend on the nature, size and loading of the filler and its interaction with the PP matrix. In most cases, commercial use of biocomposites has been limited to nonstructural or semistructural applications due to low stiffness, impact and thermal properties. Hybridization helps to overcome these problems. Nanofillers can improve the thermal stability, flame retardancy and durability, and therefore give rise to new applications and extend the existing applications of PP-based biocomposites
Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogels produced using the freeze-thaw method have attracted attention for a long time since their first preparation in 1975. Due to the importance of polymer intrinsic features and the advantages associated with them, they are very suitable for biomedical applications such as tissue engineering and drug delivery systems. On the other hand, there is an increasing interest in the use of biobased additives such as cellulose nanocrystals, CNC. This study focused on composite hydrogels which were produced by using different concentrations of PVA (5 and 10%) and CNC (1 and 10 wt.%), also, pure PVA hydrogels were used as references. The main goal was to determine the impact of both components on mechanical, thermal, and water absorption properties of composite hydrogels as well as on morphology and initial water content. It was found that PVA had a dominating effect on all hydrogels. The effect of the CNC addition was both concentration-dependent and case-dependent. As a general trend, addition of CNC decreased the water content of the prepared hydrogels, decreased the crystallinity of the PVA, and increased the hydrogels compression modulus and strength to some extent. The performance of composite hydrogels in a cyclic compression test was studied; the hydrogel with low PVA (5) and high CNC (10) content showed totally reversible behavior after 10 cycles.
Poly(vinyl alcohol), PVA hydrogels are potential materials for biomedical and biotechnogical applications. However, their low mechanical properties restrict their use. In this study, the effect of PVA concentration, addition of nanocrystalline cellulose, CNC, number of freeze-thaw cycles and freeze-drying stage on properties of resulting hydrogels were investigated. The results showed that increase in PVA concentration and the addition of CNC improved the compressive properties of the hydrogels. Overall, increase in number of freeze-thaw cycles from 3 to 5 did not show any improvements in properties of hydrogels. Concentration of PVA had great effect on morphology of freeze-dried hydrogels. The CNC reduced crystallinity of PVA/CNC hydrogels as compared to PVA hydrogels. Rehydrated PVA and PVA/CNC hydrogels had higher compressive characteristics than their as-prepared analogues. In general, an improvement of compressive properties of hydrogels was achieved via reduction of their water content. In case of 5% PVA hydrogel, an addition of CNC was found to be beneficial because it increased degree of swelling and water content on rehydration.
Outdoor applications of composites have raised questions about their durability. In this study, the effects of outdoor weathering on the properties of wood-polypropylene composites with and without pigments were examined. The composites were placed outdoors for one year, and their colour changes were evaluated after 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months of weathering. The durability of the composites was assessed by testing flexural strength and density. Scanning electron microscopy was applied to evaluate the surface degradation of the composites. The weathering resulted in considerable colour fading of the composites. The composites containing darker colour pigments had better colour stability. After weathering, the general trend was a decrease of the flexural strength and density of the composites. The decrease in flexural strength was found to be lower for the composites having higher density.
This paper describes the fractionation and further isolation and characterisation of peptides and proteins present in sweet whey by means of ultrafiltration using a regenerated cellulose membrane with a nominal molar mass cut-off value of 10 kg/mol and nanofiltration through sulphonated polyether sulphone membrane with a cut-off of 1 kg/mol. The concentration of whey proteins was done below the critical flux. The sieving coefficients for the whey components (proteins, lactose and salts) were estimated. Whey proteins were completely rejected by the ultrafiltration membrane. Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry were used to evaluate the molar masses of the peptide fractions that were present in the whey permeates. Nanofiltration of whey permeates obtained after ultrafiltration was conducted at two pH values (9.5 and 3.0) that corresponded to the different charged states of the membrane and of the peptides. The transmission of peptides, amino acids and lactose was found to be mainly affected by the permeability of the fouling layer. The selectivity of the nanofiltration membranes toward peptides compared to lactose was calculated as 0.82 and 6.81 at pH 9.5 and 3.0, respectively.
This study focuses on the water absorption and mechanical properties of composites made from softwood sawdust and plastics, such as virgin and recycled polypropylene and polylactic acid (PLA). The composites were processed by extrusion, and their properties were investigated by a water immersion test, mechanical tests and a cyclic test for moisture resistance. Scanning electron microscopy was used to study the morphology of the fracture surfaces of the composites. The composites made with recycled polypropylene had the lowest water absorption and thickness swelling of the studied composites. The PLA composites made with heat-treated sawdust showed the highest flexural strength. Of the polypropylene based composites, virgin polypropylene resulted in composites with higher flexural strength. The Charpy impact strength of the composites was found to have an inverse trend compared to flexural strength. Cyclic treatment of the studied composites resulted in 20-60% loss of flexural strength, depending on type of composite.
Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of water immersion-freeze-thaw treatment on the physical properties, flexural strength (FS) and morphology of wood-polypropylene composites containing pigments. Design/methodology/approach - Wood-polypropylene composites containing brown, green and grey pigments were compounded in a conical twinscrew extruder. A composite manufactured without any pigment addition was used as a reference. The amount of pelletized wood, polypropylene and coupling agent (MAPP) was kept constant. The moisture content, thickness swelling (TS), FS and surface colour of the composites were measured before and after water immersion-freeze-thaw cycling. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to study the morphology of the composites. Findings - FS and dimensional stability were reduced after exposure to water immersion-freeze-thaw cycling for all composites. The surface properties (colour and roughness) of the composites also changed after exposure to water immersion-freeze-thaw cycling. The degree of change depended on the presence of pigment and the type of polypropylene (neat or recycled), however. Research limitations/implications - This study is a part of an ongoing study on weathering of wood-polymer composites (WPC) containing different additives. The results of this study were obtained from accelerated laboratory experiments. Practical implications - Inorganic pigments are widely used as additives in plastics, because they have an excellent UV absorption, good IR-reflective properties and heat stability. The research revealed that metal-containing pigments had an effect on degradation in quality of wood-polypropylene composites exposed to water immersion-freeze-thaw cyclic treatment. The addition of metal-containing pigments to composite formulation resulted in a higher susceptibility of wood-polypropylene composites to water absorption, and as a consequence to a higher drop of FS compared to composites made without pigment. The polymer matrix plays an important role in the protection of WPC against weathering. Originality/value - This paper will help in understanding possible problems in the durability of wood-polypropylene composites compounded with metal-based pigments when they are exposed to water immersion-freeze-thaw cyclic treatment.
The physical and mechanical properties of wood-polymer composites made with virgin or recycled polypropylene, or a mixture of these were studied. The composites made with recycled polypropylene had higher density, lower porosity, and higher dimensional stability compared to the composites made with virgin polypropylene. Although the composites made with recycled polypropylene exhibited lower tensile strength than those made with virgin polypropylene, they had higher Charpy impact strength. Scanning electron microscopy analysis of the fractured surfaces of the composites showed no significant differences in the fracture mechanisms of the studied composites. The degree of crystallinity was estimated to be higher for the virgin polypropylene than for the recycled one.
This study examined the effect of type of wood fibre source on the physical and mechanical properties of wood fibre-polypropylene composites. Wood flour, fibres of heattreated wood and pellets were used as sources of wood fibres in the manufacturing process. All studied wood fibre-polypropylene composites were made from 75% wood, 22% recycled polypropylene (PP) and 3% maleated polypropylene (MAPP). Wood fibrepolypropylene composites were compounded in a conical twin-screw extruder. Water absorption and thickness swelling were studied. Mechanical properties of the composites were characterised by tensile, flexural, and impact testing. Micromechanical deformation processes were investigated using scanning electron microscopy done on the fractured surfaces of broken samples. The durability of composites exposed to three accelerated cycles of water immersion, freezing and thawing was examined. The results showed that the density of the composites was a key factor governing water absorption and thickness swelling. A significant improvement in tensile strength, flexural strength, and Charpy impact strength was observed for composites reinforced with heat-treated fibre compared to composites reinforced with pellets and especially to wood flour reinforced composites. The flexural strength and dimensional stability performance reduced after exposure to freezethaw cycling for all composites, but the degree of these changes was dependent on the wood fibre source.
In this study, complexes of nucleic acids and acidic nuclear proteins were isolated from baker's yeast cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae by mild alkaline extraction followed by precipitation with acetic acid. The optimal composition of the buffer applied for extraction of nucleoprotein complexes was determined. The high and low molar mass fractions of the nucleoprotein complexes were separated using cross-flow microfiltration through track-etched membranes. The molar masses were determined by intrinsic viscosity measurements and the molar mass distribution in nucleoprotein complexes was studied by gel permeation chromatography. The protein component of the nucleoprotein complexes was purified on a strongly basic anion exchange resin. The high molar mass nucleoprotein complexes could induce the growth of culture cells of S. cerevisiae exposed to ultraviolet irradiation or treated with hydrogen peroxide
This chapter summarizes information about the biodegradation and flame retar- dancy of PP-based biocomposites and nano composites obtained from highly ranked journals published during the last two decades. The first part of this chapter deals with the biodegradation of PP-based composites. The second part of this chapter begins with a short description of the specific flammability of PP, followed by an overview of fire retardants and flame testing methods and standards. PP composites reinforced with commonly applied cellulosic fillers, such as wood, flax and others, as well as rarely used wool fibers are considered. The effect of different nanometric fillers alone or in combination with conventional fire retardants on the flammability of composites is also described. Along with comparative analysis of different fire retardants regarding their ability to decrease the flammability of PP matrix composites, the mechanism action and their possible synergy effects are highlighted.
The separation of rare earth elements (REEs) has been a persistent challenge in the industrial sector. Despite the development of numerous adsorption materials for rare earth element separation, achieving high adsorption capacity and superior separation selectivity from these materials simultaneously has proven difficult. In this study, we synthesized a nanocomposite material called CoFeM@Be_IIM by combining bentonite clay's good adsorption capacity with cobalt ferrite's superior magnetic separation performance (CoFe2O4) and ion-imprinted materials’ high target separation selectivity (IIMs). We used surface ion-imprinting technique to create the material. The ion-imprinted material has a maximum adsorption capacity of 87.6 mg/g for Gd(III), with a selectivity of Gd/La ≈ 28.6, Gd/Nd ≈ 22.6, and Gd/Y ≈ 15.2. The Gd(III)-CoFeM@Be_IIM showed good reusability for up to five cycles. Our work presents a new magnetic ion-imprinted nano-adsorbent as a reliable and effective solution for recovering and utilizing REEs from industrial wastewater.
The impact of mineral fillers to the moisture resistance of the wood-plastic composites (WPC) is studied. Five inorganic fillers were tested for the wood-plastic composites calcium carbonate, two different types of wollastonite, soapstone and talc. The amount of polypropylene, wood and mineral was held constant, only the mineral type was changed during the tests. The studied composites were also compared with a reference sample, which was manufactured without any mineral addition. All added minerals decreased the swelling and moisture absorption of the wood-plastic composite considerably. Also the density of the wood-plastic composites increased when minerals were added. Without any added mineral, clear openings could be seen in the composite structure in scanning electron microscope (SEM) pictures. These openings could work as pathways for water into the inner parts of the WPC and increase swelling. It could also be seen in the SEM pictures that when mineral was added, these pathways for moisture were closed. After three weeks soak/freeze/dry cycles, the bending strength of the reference sample decreased considerably more than the bending strength of the samples with added minerals. Of the studied minerals, talc was the most effective.
Five mineral fillers were tested for wood-plastic composites (WPCs): calcium carbonate, two different types of wollastonite, soapstone and talc. The impact of the fillers on the mechanical properties of the composites was studied. The experiments included bending tests, tensile tests, Brinell hardness and scanning electron microscopy experiments. The amount of wood, mineral and plastic (polypropylene) was kept steady. Only the mineral type was changed during the tests. A control sample without any mineral added was also manufactured. The mineral addition improved the tensile strength of the WPCs. The hardness of the composite was also improved when the minerals were added, and along with the increasing mineral hardness, the hardness of the composite increased. The wollastonite acicular shape was crushed during the manufacturing process, so the phase of the process in which the minerals are added requires careful consideration.
Wood-plastic composites (WPCs) have several exterior applications where they are easily exposed to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. The paper presents the current situation in a field of UV protection of WPCs, including the most commonly used protective agents and methods, such as UV absorbers and hindered amine light stabilizers (HALS). Surface dressing methods, such as painting, coating and film coating are not included. The focus of the paper is on the ways of how to integrate UV protection comprehensively over the material. The work is a literature review and practical experiments are not included.
The thermal properties of wood-plastic composites with five different mineral fillers were studied. The tested mineral fillers were calcite (CaCO 3), two different qualities of wollastonite, soapstone, and talc. The amount of wood, mineral, and plastic (polypropylene) was kept constant. Only the mineral type has been changed during the tests. The thermal behavior of the samples was studied by using a differential scanning calorimeter, a thermogravimetric analyzer and by determining the heat build-up. The analyzed properties were compared with a reference sample made without adding any minerals. The results show that the addition of mineral fillers does not remarkably change the thermal stability of composites. All the studied mineral fillers except soapstone had a small effect on the heat build-up.
This feature article provides details of a study in which small molar mass substances were used as model substances in nanofiltration using NF-270 and Desal-5 DL membranes. The hydrophobicities of the substances were calculated, and flux, retention and critical flux were measured for the filtration and related to flow conditions and characteristics of model compounds and membranes.
This review addresses the recent developments of the processing of cellulose nanocomposites, focusing on the most used techniques, including solution casting, melt-processing of thermoplastic cellulose nanocomposites and resin impregnation of cellulose nanopapers using thermoset resins. Important techniques, such as partially dissolved cellulose nanocomposites, nanocomposite foams reinforced with nanocellulose, as well as long continuous fibers or filaments, are also addressed. It is shown how the research on cellulose nanocomposites has rapidly increased during the last 10 years, and manufacturing techniques have been developed from simple casting to these more sophisticated methods. To produce cellulose nanocomposites for commercial use, the processing of these materials must be developed from laboratory to industrially viable methods.
This work investigated the difference between membrane cut-offs measured with the CHARMME methods and the values quoted from the manufacturers. Four different membranes were characterised. The two regenerated cellulose membranes that according to the manufacturers had cut-offs of 5 and 10 kD had, in fact, the same cut-off of 2.5 kD. It was also found that the polyethersulfone membrane had a lower cut-off (3 kD) than that stated by the membrane manufacturers (5 kD). A cross-flow velocity of 2 m/s and a flux of 40 1/h/m2 was found to keep the mass transfer coefficient within a tolerable range for all PEGs used.