Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
5
Nanocellulose-Reinforced Polymer Matrix
Composites Fabricated by
In-Situ
Polymerization
Technique
Dipa Ray
*
and Sunanda Sain
Department of Polymer Science & Technology, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, India
Abstract
A major research thrust is now taking place on the generation of micro- and nanocellulose from
various renewable resources for use as reinforcement in polymer matrix composites. Preparation
of nanocellulose from natural resources can lead to the production of biocomposites in an eco-
nomic way. To achieve uniform dispersion of the cellulosic i llers in polymers and to reduce
their high moisture absorption tendency, an
in-situ
polymerization technique can be adopted.
Cellulose i bers are ot en chemically modii ed or surface treated with suitable chemicals. An
in-situ
polymerization technique can exploit the best possible ef ects of chemical modii cation,
which enables formation of a chemical linkage between the cellulosic i ller and the polymer dur-
ing the course of polymerization. Also, the properties of the composites are further enhanced,
the composites tend to become more biodegradable in composting environment, becoming
more environmentally friendly, and their moisture absorption tendency is signii cantly reduced .
Keywords:
Polymers, nanocellulose, nanocomposites, surface modii cation,
in-situ
polymerization, mechanical properties, biodegradation, scanning electron microscopy (SEM)
5.1
Introduction
Nanocomposite describes a two-phase material where one of the phases has at least one
dimension in the nanometer range (1-100 nm). h ey dif er from conventional com-
posites by the exceptionally high surface-to-volume ratio of the reinforcing phase and/
or its exceptionally high aspect ratio. h e reinforcing material can be made up of parti-
cles (e.g., minerals), sheets (e.g., exfoliated clay stacks) or i bers (e.g., carbon nanotubes,
electrospun i bers or cellulose nanoi bers). Large reinforcement surface area means that
a relatively small amount of nanoscale reinforcement can have an observable ef ect on
the macroscale properties of the composite. h ere has been enormous interest in the
commercialization of nanocomposites for a variety of applications, and a number of
