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A combined theoretical and experimental investigation of the valorization of mechanical and thermal properties of the fly ash-reinforced polypropylene hybrid composites

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Abstract

Fly ash (FA) particles were surface modified with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (Ctab) and hybridized with graphene oxide (GO) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) separately to increase interfacial adhesion with the polypropylene (PP) matrix. For a 5 wt.% CMC-hybridized FA, and Ctab-treated FA-filled PP composite, the highest increase in tensile (13% and 7%) and flexural (30% and 25%) strength was observed compared to pristine PP. The functionalization on FA surface was confirmed by ATR-IR analysis. Morphological study using FE-SEM showed that FA particles were successfully carried on to CMC and GO surfaces. An increment in melting temperature by ~ 3 °C was obtained. Improved thermal stability of the composites was confirmed from TGA analysis. The molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were carried out for all the three modification and it predicted highest interfacial interaction in case of Ctab-FA-reinforced PP composite.

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Abbreviations

APTES:

(3-Aminopropyl) triethoxysilane

Ctab-FA:

Ctab-treated FA reinforcement

GO-FA:

GO-hybridized FA reinforcement

CMC-FA:

CMC-hybridized FA reinforcement

X c :

Crystallinity

SEBS:

Styrene ethylene butylene styrene

MA:

Maleic anhydride

MA-g-SEBS:

MA-grafted SEBS

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Acknowledgements

The authors involved in this work endorse IIT Roorkee for equipping excellent experimental, testing and characterization facility. First and second author would like to acknowledge the Ministry of Human Resources and Development (MHRD) for providing monthly research fellowship.

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  1. Department of Polymer and Process Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Saharanpur Campus, Paper Mill Road, Saharanpur, UP, 247001, India

    Atul Kumar Maurya, Rupam Gogoi, Sushanta K. Sethi & Gaurav Manik

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Maurya, A.K., Gogoi, R., Sethi, S.K. et al. A combined theoretical and experimental investigation of the valorization of mechanical and thermal properties of the fly ash-reinforced polypropylene hybrid composites. J Mater Sci 56, 16976–16998 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-021-06383-2

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