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Coconut shell powder reinforced thermoplastic polyurethane/natural rubber blend-composites: effect of silane coupling agents on the mechanical and thermal properties of the composites

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Abstract

The objective of this work is to modify coconut shell powder (CSP) using various silane coupling agents and to study the effect of modification on the interfacial adhesion and mechanical properties of the fillers in the binary blend of thermoplastic polyurethane and natural rubber. Mechanical properties such as tensile strength, tear strength, hardness and abrasion resistance were evaluated. Results revealed that, compared to triethoxyvinylsilane modified CSP composites, glycidyloxypropyltrimethoxysilane treated CSP showed higher tensile strength and better interfacial adhesion with the matrix. The efficiency of the silane treatment is further characterized by the FT-IR analysis of fillers and the morphological study of both the CSP and the composites. FT-IR studies demonstrated that the silyl parts of both silane coupling agents efficiently grafted to the CSP. SEM images of treated CSPs provide ample evidence for the increased mechanical properties of the composites. The increased thermal stability of is evident from the thermo gravimetric analysis.

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Acknowledgements

One of the authors (AKB) gratefully acknowledges the Council of Science and Industrial Research (CSIR) for the research fellowship. The authors deeply thank Dr. C Rajesh and Divia MES KVM College, Kerala for the mechanical testing results, Dr. M.K. Sarath Josh, IISER Kolkata for the SEM images and K.V. Mahesh for providing TGA data. Funding was provided by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (Grant No. 09/043(0155)/2012-EMR-I).

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  1. Department of Chemistry, University of Calicut, Malappuram, Kerala, 673 635, India

    Aparna K. Balan, Sreejith Mottakkunnu Parambil, Shaniba Vakyath, Jinitha Thulissery Velayudhan, Subair Naduparambath & Purushothaman Etathil

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  1. Aparna K. Balan
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  2. Sreejith Mottakkunnu Parambil
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Correspondence to Purushothaman Etathil.

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Balan, A.K., Mottakkunnu Parambil, S., Vakyath, S. et al. Coconut shell powder reinforced thermoplastic polyurethane/natural rubber blend-composites: effect of silane coupling agents on the mechanical and thermal properties of the composites. J Mater Sci 52, 6712–6725 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-017-0907-y

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