scholarly journals Research Regarding the Mechanical Properties of Some Biodegradable Polymeric Composites for Food Packaging Products

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (4) ◽  
pp. 498-501
Author(s):  
Constantin Gheorghe Opran ◽  
Elena Grosu ◽  
Marius Enachescu

Biodegradable polymers became one of the most important materials with large applicability, as they do not generate wastes after life cycle. An important application is food packaging fabricated by injection molding processing. In this paper, we present the investigation of the mechanical properties of some biodegradable polymers based on PLA composites obtained by melting processing and their morphology studied by SEM analyses, in comparison to polypropylene and neat PLA. We found out that tensile strength, elongation at break and Young modulus exhibit values appropriate to injection molding processing and they are very close related to crystalline or amorphous character of the materials.

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Ahmad ◽  
MA Islam ◽  
MF Uddin

Chopped jute fiber-epoxy composites with varying fiber length (2-12 mm) and mass fraction (0.05-0.35) had been prepared by a heat press unit. The cross-linked product was characterized in terms of specific gravity, thermal conductivity, tensile strength, Young modulus and elongation at break. The transverse thermal conductivities for randomly oriented fibers in the composite were investigated by Lees and Charlton’s method. The tensile strength, Young modulus and elongation at break were investigated by a Universal Tensile Tester. With an increase in the fiber content (irrespective of the fiber length), the thermal conductivity of the composite decreases; the decreasing rate being highest for the fiber length of 2 mm followed by that for the fiber length of 6 and 12 mm. The decreasing rate of the thermal conductivity of the jute-epoxy composite is comparatively higher to that reported in literature for acrylic polymer hemp fiber composite. The tensile strength also decreases with the increase of the fiber content in the composite. The fiber length does not show to have significant effect on the tensile strength of the composite; the variation in strength being masked within experimental error. The Young modulus increases with the increase of fiber content within elastic limit; showing the highest values for the fiber length of 6 mm followed by those for the fiber length of 2 mm and 12 mm. The elongation at break shows slightly increasing trend up to 15% fiber content, but beyond that it decreases drastically. The specific gravity decreases with the increase in the fiber content and thus the recalculated specific tensile strength is found to keep at a stable level of 36MPa up to the fiber content of 20%, and beyond that the specific tensile strength decreases with the increase in the fiber content. It is concluded that jute fiber-epoxy composite could be used as a good heat-insulating material. Further investigation is recommended on the improvement of the thermal insulation keeping the mechanical properties unchanged or even improved. The TGA study is also required to ascertain the field of application of the material. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jce.v27i2.17807 Journal of Chemical Engineering, IEB Vol. ChE. 27, No. 2, December 2012: 77-82


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arham Rusli

Appropriate concentration of base material and plasticizer is required to obtain good physical and mechanical properties of edible film for food packaging and preservation functions. The aim of this study was to obtain the best combination of the base material and plasticizer in the manufacture of agar films based on physical and mechanical properties. Results showed that the physical and mechanical properties of the agar edible film were affected by the agar and glycerol concentrations. Increasing agar concentrations resulted in the increase in the film thickness, tensile strength (TS), and elongation at break (EAB), but decreased the filmsolubility. While increasing glycerol concentration tended to increase the film thickness and solubility, but decrease the TS of the film. The best concentration combination of agar and glycerol in this study was 3 and 10%, respectively.


Author(s):  
Sujan Kumar Das ◽  
Jahid M.M. Islam ◽  
Monirul Hasan ◽  
Humayun Kabir ◽  
Md Abdul Gafur ◽  
...  

Sodium alginate (TiO2) sand composites were prepared by solution casting. Purified sand was added in the composite films to increase electrical conductivity. Electrical properties such as conductivity, capacitance, dielectric constant, and loss tangent of the composites were investigated. The current voltage characteristics for all the composites showed ohmic behavior. All the electrical properties have been found to improve with the incorporation of sand (SiO2) but 6% sand containing composite exhibits the best electrical properties. The mechanical properties tensile strength (TS), elongation at break (Eb) and Young modulus for 6% sand containing composite film are found to be 4.445 MPa, 9.76%, and 72.8 MPa respectively. The experimental results reveal that the blended films exhibit higher stability and improved mechanical properties of both tensile strength and elongation at break in dry state. Water absorption properties of the composites are found to decrease with the increase of sand content. Lowest water uptake properties and highest stability were demonstrated by 6% sand containing sample. Electrically conductive composite films have useful applications for solar cells and optoelectronics. Thus, this study is very much expected to aid in the design and selection of proper composite for the potential application of solar cell and optoelectronics.


Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 1502
Author(s):  
Eliezer Velásquez ◽  
Sebastián Espinoza ◽  
Ximena Valenzuela ◽  
Luan Garrido ◽  
María José Galotto ◽  
...  

The deterioration of the physical–mechanical properties and loss of the chemical safety of plastics after consumption are topics of concern for food packaging applications. Incorporating nanoclays is an alternative to improve the performance of recycled plastics. However, properties and overall migration from polymer/clay nanocomposites to food require to be evaluated case-by-case. This work aimed to investigate the effect of organic modifier types of clays on the structural, thermal and mechanical properties and the overall migration of nanocomposites based on 50/50 virgin and recycled post-consumer polypropylene blend (VPP/RPP) and organoclays for food packaging applications. The clay with the most hydrophobic organic modifier caused higher thermal stability of the nanocomposites and greater intercalation of polypropylene between clay mineral layers but increased the overall migration to a fatty food simulant. This migration value was higher from the 50/50 VPP/RPP film than from VPP. Nonetheless, clays reduced the migration and even more when the clay had greater hydrophilicity because of lower interactions between the nanocomposite and the fatty simulant. Conversely, nanocomposites and VPP/RPP control films exhibited low migration values in the acid and non-acid food simulants. Regarding tensile parameters, elongation at break values of PP film significantly increased with RPP addition, but the incorporation of organoclays reduced its ductility to values closer to the VPP.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 5317
Author(s):  
Rafał Malinowski ◽  
Aneta Raszkowska-Kaczor ◽  
Krzysztof Moraczewski ◽  
Wojciech Głuszewski ◽  
Volodymyr Krasinskyi ◽  
...  

The need for the development of new biodegradable materials and modification of the properties the current ones possess has essentially increased in recent years. The aim of this study was the comparison of changes occurring in poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) due to its modification by high-energy electron beam derived from a linear electron accelerator, as well as the addition of natural fibers in the form of cut hemp fibers. Changes to the fibers structure in the obtained composites and the geometrical surface structure of sample fractures with the use of scanning electron microscopy were investigated. Moreover, the mechanical properties were examined, including tensile strength, elongation at break, flexural modulus and impact strength of the modified PCL. It was found that PCL, modified with hemp fibers and/or electron radiation, exhibited enhanced flexural modulus but the elongation at break and impact strength decreased. Depending on the electron radiation dose and the hemp fibers content, tensile strength decreased or increased. It was also found that hemp fibers caused greater changes to the mechanical properties of PCL than electron radiation. The prepared composites exhibited uniform distribution of the dispersed phase in the polymer matrix and adequate adhesion at the interface between the two components.


Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 1616
Author(s):  
Vincenzo Titone ◽  
Antonio Correnti ◽  
Francesco Paolo La Mantia

This work is focused on the influence of moisture content on the processing and mechanical properties of a biodegradable polyester used for applications in injection molding. The pellets of the biodegradable polyester were exposed under different relative humidity conditions at a constant temperature before being compression molded. The compression-molded specimens were again placed under the above conditions before the mechanical testing. With all these samples, it is possible to determine the effect of moisture content on the processing and mechanical properties separately, as well as the combined effect of moisture content on the mechanical properties. The results obtained showed that the amount of absorbed water—both before processing and before mechanical testing—causes an increase in elongation at break and a slight reduction of the elastic modulus and tensile strength. These changes have been associated with possible hydrolytic degradation during the compression molding process and, in particular, with the plasticizing action of the moisture absorbed by the specimens.


2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-26
Author(s):  
Myrtha Karina ◽  
Lucia Indrarti ◽  
Rike Yudianti ◽  
Indriyati

The effect of castor oil on the physical and mechanical properties of bacterial cellulose is described. Bacterial cellulose (BC) was impregnated with 0.5–2% (w/v) castor oil (CO) in acetone–water, providing BCCO films. Scanning electron micrographs revealed that the castor oil penetrated the pores of the bacterial cellulose, resulting in a smoother morphology and enhanced hydrophilicity. Castor oil caused a slight change in crystallinity indices and resulted in reduced tensile strength and Young's modulus but increased elongation at break. A significant reduction in tensile strength and Young's modulus was achieved in BCCO films with 2% castor oil, and there was an improvement in elongation at break and hydrophilicity. Impregnation with castor oil, a biodegradable and safe plasticiser, resulted in less rigid and more ductile composites.


2015 ◽  
Vol 799-800 ◽  
pp. 115-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anika Zafiah M. Rus ◽  
Nur Munirah Abdullah ◽  
M.F.L. Abdullah ◽  
M. Izzul Faiz Idris

Graphite reinforced bio-based epoxy composites with different particulate fractions of graphite were investigated for mechanical properties such as tensile strength, elastic modulus and elongation at break. The graphite content was varied from 5 wt.%, 10 wt.%, 15 wt.%, 20 wt.%, 25 wt.%, 30 wt.% by weight percent in the composites. The results showed that the mechanical properties of the composites mainly depend on dispersion condition of the treated graphite filler, aggregate structure and strong interfacial bonding between treated graphite in the bio-based epoxy matrix. The composites showed improved tensile strength and elastic modulus with increase treated graphite weight loading. This also revealed the composites with increasing filler content was decreasing the elongation at break.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongfang Qian ◽  
Zhen Zhang ◽  
Laijiu Zheng ◽  
Ruoyuan Song ◽  
Yuping Zhao

Design and fabrication of nanofibrous scaffolds should mimic the native extracellular matrix. This study is aimed at investigating electrospinning of polycaprolactone (PCL) blended with chitosan-gelatin complex. The morphologies were observed from scanning electron microscope. As-spun blended mats had thinner fibers than pure PCL. X-ray diffraction was used to analyze the degree of crystallinity. The intensity at two peaks at 2θof 21° and 23.5° gradually decreased with the percentage of chitosan-gelatin complex increasing. Moreover, incorporation of the complex could obviously improve the hydrophilicity of as-spun blended mats. Mechanical properties of as-spun nanofibrous mats were also tested. The elongation at break of fibrous mats increased with the PCL content increasing and the ultimate tensile strength varied with different weight ratios. The as-spun mats had higher tensile strength when the weight ratio of PCL to CS-Gel was 75/25 compared to pure PCL. Both as-spun PCL scaffolds and PCL/CS-Gel scaffolds supported the proliferation of porcine iliac endothelial cells, and PCL/CS-Gel had better cell viability than pure PCL. Therefore, electrospun PCL/Chitosan-gelatin nanofibrous mats with weight ratio of 75/25 have better hydrophilicity mechanical properties, and cell proliferation and thus would be a promising candidate for tissue engineering scaffolds.


2015 ◽  
Vol 659 ◽  
pp. 659-665
Author(s):  
Supakit Chuaping ◽  
Thomas Mann ◽  
Rapeephun Dangtungee ◽  
Suchart Siengchin

The topic of this research work was to demonstrate the feasibility of a 3D-MID concept using injection molding technique and investigate the effects of two weld line types on the structure and mechanical properties such as tensile, flexural strength and morphology. In order to obtain more understanding of the bonds between polymer and metals, two different polymer bases of polyphthalamide (PPA) with the same type and amount of filler content were produced by injection molding at the different processing conditions. A mold was designed in such a way that weld and meld line can be produced with different angles by changing as insert inside of the mold. The mechanical properties such as stiffness, tensile strength and flexural strength were determined in tensile and flexural tests, respectively. The results showed in line with the expectation of high reduction on mechanical properties in area where weld/meld lines occurred. The result of tensile test was clearly seen that weld and meld line showed a considerable influence on mechanical properties. The reduction in tensile strength was approximately 58% according to weld line types, whereas in flexural strength was approximately 62%. On the other hand, the effect of the injection times and mold temperatures on the tensile strength were marginal.


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