Toughening of poly(L-lactide)/multiwalled carbon nanotubes nanocomposite with ethylene-co-vinyl acetate

✍ Scribed by Yunyun Shi; Yanli Li; Jun Wu; Ting Huang; Chen Chen; Ya Peng; Yong Wang

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 692 KB
• Volume: 49
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0887-6266
• DOI: 10.1002/polb.22177

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Poly(L‐lactide)/multiwalled carbon nanotubes (PLLA/MWCNTs) nanocomposite recently attracts much attention because of its excellent comprehensive properties including improved thermostability, tensile strength, and conductivity. However, the nanocomposite exhibits similar brittleness compared with unmodified PLLA. In this work, a polar elastomer, that is, ethylene‐co‐vinyl acetate (EVA), was introduced into PLLA/MWCNTs nanocomposite. The selective distribution of MWCNTs and the effects of EVA on crystalline structure of PLLA were investigated using scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope, differential scanning calorimetry, and wide angle X‐ray diffraction. The results show that the presence of EVA induces the change of the distribution of MWCNTs in the nanocomposites, and consequently, the cold crystallization of PLLA is prevented. With the increase of EVA content, both the ductility and the impact resistance of PLLA/FMWCNTs are improved greatly, indicating the toughening effect of EVA on PLLA/MWCNTs nanocomposite. The decreased tensile strength and modulus can be compensated through annealing treatment. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2011