Advances in Engineering Advances in Engineering features breaking research judged by Advances in Engineering advisory team to be of key importance in the Engineering field. Papers are selected from over 10,000 published each week from most peer reviewed journals.
Magniez K, Voda AS, Kafi AA, Fichini A, Guo Q, Fox BL.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2013 Jan 23;5(2):276-83.
Institute for Frontier Materials, Deakin University, Victoria, Waurn Ponds, 3217, Australia. [email protected].
Abstract
This work demonstrates that the interfacial properties in a natural fiber reinforced polylactide bio-composite can be tailored through surface adsorptionof amphiphilic and biodegradable poly (ethylene glycol)-b-poly(l-lactide) (PEG-PLLA) block copolymers. The deposition from solvent solution of PEG-PLLA copolymers onto the fibrous substrate induced distinct mechanisms of molecular organization at the cellulosic interface, which are correlated to the hydrophobic/hydrophilic ratios and the type of solvent used. The findings of the study evidenced that the performance of the correspondingbiocomposites with polylactide were effectively enhanced by using these copolymers as interfacial coupling agents. During the fabrication stage, diffusion of the polylactide in the melt induced a change in the environment surrounding block copolymers which became hydrophobic. It is proposed that molecular reorganization of the block copolymers at the interface occurred, which favored the interactions with both the hydrophilic fibers and hydrophobic polylactide matrix. The strong interactions such as intra- and intermolecular hydrogen bonds formed across the fiber-matrix interface can be accounted for the enhancement in properties displayed by the biocomposites. Although the results reported here are confined, this concept is unique as it shows that by tuning the amphiphilicity and the type of building blocks, it is possible to control the surface properties of the substrate by self-assembly and disassembly of the amphiphiles for functional materials.
Bio for Dr. Kevin Magniez:
Kevin Magniez is a Research Academic at the Institute for Frontier Materials, Deakin University, Australia. Kevin completed a PhD in materials science in 2006 as part of a collaborative project between the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and Deakin University. Between 2006 and 2009, Kevin worked on an aerospace program funded by the CRC for Advanced Composite Structures. The project was aimed at overcoming micro-cracking issues in structural composites. Kevin joined Deakin as a research academic in 2009 and since he has contributed over 30 publications in refereed journals. Kevin is currently working on a number of innovative academic and industrial projects including bio-polymers, bio-composites and nanocomposites. In his latest publication in ACS Materials and Interfaces, Kevin demonstrated that the interfacial affinity issues across the fibre-matrix interface in bio-composites can be improved using amphiphilic block copolymers. Kevin has since expanded on this work by tuning the amphiphilicity and the type of building blocks for application in functional materials. Contact Kevin at [email protected] for any further information or collaborative proposal.
