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Rheological behavior of highly loaded cellulose nanocrystal/poly(vinyl alcohol) composite suspensions

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Abstract

Recent emphasis on the pilot scale production of cellulosic nanomaterials has increased interest in the effective use of these materials as reinforcements for polymer composites. An important, enabling step to realizing the potential of cellulosic nanomaterials in their applications is the materials processing of CNC/polymer composites through multiple routes, i.e. melt, solution, and aqueous processing methods. Therefore, the objective of this research is to characterize the viscoelastic behavior of aqueous nanocomposite suspensions containing cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and a water-soluble polymer, poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA). Specifically, small amplitude oscillatory shear measurements were performed on neat PVA solutions and CNC-loaded PVA suspensions. The experimental results indicated that the methods used in this study were able to produce high-quality nanocomposite suspensions at high CNC loadings, up to 67 wt% with respect to PVA. Additionally, the structure achieved in the nanocomposite suspensions was understood through component attributes and interactions. At CNC loadings near and less than the percolation threshold, a polymer mediated CNC network was present. At loadings well above the percolation threshold, a CNC network was present, indicated by limited molecular weight dependence of the storage modulus. Overall, these results provide increased fundamental understanding of CNC/PVA suspensions that can be leveraged to develop advanced aqueous processing methods for these materials.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Renewable Bioproducts Institute for providing a Paper Science and Engineering Fellowship for C.E.M as well as support for the purchase of some of the materials and supplies used in this work. The authors also thank the USDA Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory for providing the CNCs used in this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Caitlin E. Meree & Meisha L. Shofner

  2. Renewable Bioproducts Institute, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Caitlin E. Meree, J. Carson Meredith & Meisha L. Shofner

  3. Forest Products Laboratory, U.S. Forest Service, Madison, WI, USA

    Gregory T. Schueneman

  4. School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA

    J. Carson Meredith

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  1. Caitlin E. Meree
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  2. Gregory T. Schueneman
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Correspondence to Meisha L. Shofner.

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Meree, C.E., Schueneman, G.T., Meredith, J.C. et al. Rheological behavior of highly loaded cellulose nanocrystal/poly(vinyl alcohol) composite suspensions. Cellulose 23, 3001–3012 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-016-1003-1

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