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The role of multi-walled carbon nanotubes in shear enhanced crystallization of isotactic poly(1-butene)

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Abstract

The flow-induced crystallization behavior of nanocomposites, containing isotactic poly(1-butene) (PB) and functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT), was investigated. Three different MWNT concentrations (0.1, 1, 5 wt%) were used to prepare the nanocomposites. Effects of MWNT and shear flow on the crystallization parameters were evaluated separately. Rheological measurements based on oscillatory shear revealed induction time and crystallization half-time at the quiescent state, where both parameters exhibited the nucleating effect of MWNT on PB. Rheological measurements based on steady-state shear flow and short-time shear flow revealed the evolution of molecular orientation, which was studied in both PB and its nanocomposites. A small increase in crystallization kinetic was recorded in PB under shear having moderate values of the Weissenberg (We) number. On the other hand, a dramatic synergistic effect of MWNT and shear was detected under the same shear conditions for nanocomposites. The optical microscopic images exhibited a clear transition from isotropic to row-like morphology in the case of nanocomposites under shear.

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Acknowledgements

The US team acknowledges the financial support of this work by National Science Foundation (DMR-0405432).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Ingegneria Chimica e Alimentare, Università degli Studi di Salerno, via Ponte don Melillo, 84084, Fisciano, SA, Italy

    Rossana Iervolino, Elvira Somma & Maria Rossella Nobile

  2. Department of Chemistry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-3400, USA

    Xuming Chen & Benjamin S. Hsiao

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  1. Rossana Iervolino
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  2. Elvira Somma
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  3. Maria Rossella Nobile
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  4. Xuming Chen
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  5. Benjamin S. Hsiao
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Correspondence to Maria Rossella Nobile.

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Iervolino, R., Somma, E., Nobile, M.R. et al. The role of multi-walled carbon nanotubes in shear enhanced crystallization of isotactic poly(1-butene). J Therm Anal Calorim 98, 611–622 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-009-0505-6

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