Preparation And Characterization Of Nano-cellulose Fiber/HDPE Composites

In this paper, nano-cellulose fiber (NCF)/high density polyethylene (HDPE)composites were prepared with NCF and HDPE. The mechanical property, interfacecompatibility, thermal property and crystallization property of NCF/HDPE compositeswere characterized with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Mechanicalproperties test, Field emission scanning electron microscopy(FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction(XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and dynamic mechanical analysis(DMA), the results as follows:(1) FT-IR spectra showed that KH550, MF pre-polymers and MAH had an effect on theNCF. They were effectively grafted or coated to the surface of NCF. Threeprocessing had reduced the polarity and hydrophilicity of NCF, and the interfacialcompatibility of NCF and HDPE was improved. Compared with controls, the tensilestrength was increased by25.8%,23.6%, and33.5%, respectively,.(2) OPE is both a good lubricant and a dispersant, NCF could be effectively dispersed inthe HDPE with the introduction of OPE. The tensile strength of NCF/HDPEcomposites maximized at37.4MPa with12%of NCF,44.7%higher than that ofHDPE.(3) The introduction of NCF could accelerate the overall non-isothermal crystallizationprocess of HDPE and refine the crystallite, but it did not change the nucleationmechanism and dimension/the size of spherulite growth of HDPE matrix. The resultsindicated that the Avrami equation could effectively describe the beginning ofcrystallization, and the Ozawa equation could describe the end of crystallization,while Mo method was succeeded in describing the whole non-isothermal process ofcomposites.(4) With an increasing content of NCF, the initial decomposition temperature ofcomposites decreased, and the addition of the appropriate surface treatment agentcould prevent the degradation rate of some fiber in composites.(5) The storage modulus of composites increased in the earlier stage and decreased laterwith increasing an content of NCF. The Tgof composites increased because of theaddition of NCF. The storage modulus of NCF/HDPE composites with using surfacemodification increased.