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Effect of exfoliated graphite nanoplatelets on the mechanical and viscoelastic properties of poly(lactic acid) biocomposites reinforced with kenaf fibers

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Abstract

The focus of this study is to explore synergy between nanomaterials such as exfoliated graphite nanoplatelets (xGnP) and micro-size reinforcements such as kenaf natural fibers, in poly(lactic acid) based composites. The nano-biocomposites are made by melt-mixing followed by injection molding. Prior to melt-mixing the kenaf fibers were coated with the xGnP using sonication. The reinforcement content used in the study was up to 5 wt% and up to 40 wt% for xGnP and kenaf fibers, respectively. The flexural strength and modulus and the viscoelastic properties such as storage modulus were determined. It was found that addition of 5 wt% xGnP did not increase the viscosity of the polymer melt, enhanced the flexural modulus by 25–30% at any fiber loading used but did not increase the strength, indicating insufficient load transfer at the polymer-xGnP or xGnP-kenaf interface. Finally, addition of xGnP had a positive effect on the heat distortion temperature but only at higher fiber loadings.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank the financial support from the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology and the financial support from the CDRS R&D Center (the Twenty-first Century Frontier R & D Program) funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Korea.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Functional Materials Research Center, Korea Institute of Energy Research, 71-2 Jang-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, 305-343, Korea

    Seong Ok Han & Jung Ho Park

  2. G. W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30336, USA

    Mehdi Karevan, Md A. Bhuiyan & Kyriaki Kalaitzidou

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  1. Seong Ok Han
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  2. Mehdi Karevan
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  3. Md A. Bhuiyan
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  4. Jung Ho Park
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  5. Kyriaki Kalaitzidou
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Correspondence to Kyriaki Kalaitzidou.

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Han, S.O., Karevan, M., Bhuiyan, M.A. et al. Effect of exfoliated graphite nanoplatelets on the mechanical and viscoelastic properties of poly(lactic acid) biocomposites reinforced with kenaf fibers. J Mater Sci 47, 3535–3543 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-011-6199-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-011-6199-8

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