SUPER TOUGH GELS WITH A DOUBLE NETWORK STRUCTURE

 Living tissues work with fantastic functions in soft and wet gel-like state. Thus, hydrogels have attracted much attention as excellent soft & wet materials, suitable for making artificial organs for medical treatments.However, conventional hydrogels are mechanically too weak for practical uses. We have created double network (DN) hydrogels with extremely high mechanical strength in order to overcome this problem. DN gels are interpenetrating network (IPN) hydrogels consisting of rigid polyelectrolyte and soft neutral polymer. Their excellent mechanical properties cannot be explained by the standard fracture theories. In this paper, we discuss about the toughening mechanism of DN gels in accordance with their characteristic behavior, such as large hysteresis and necking phenomenon. We also describe the results on tissue engineering application of DN gels.     

Effect of nucleating agent on the structure and properties of polypropylene/poly(ethylene-octene) blends

The effect of the sorbital nucleating agent on properties of the ethylene-octene copolymer (POE) toughened polypropylene (PP) was studied. The results show that the addition of POE increases notched Izod and Charpy impact strength significantly but impair the tensile strength and flexural modulus. As a nucleating agent (1,3,2,4-di(p-methylbenzylidene) sorbitol, DM) was added, the toughness and stiffness of toughed PP increased simultaneously at the same content of POE. This result shows that the toughness and stiffness of toughed PP are in balance. Polarized light microscopy analysis shows that with the addition of POE and nucleating agent, only a low level of PP spherulites were observed.     

Micromechanics of polymers

Polymers possess a very large inherent capacity for property modifications. The bridge between structure or morphology and mechanical properties is created by the micromechanical processes of deformation and fracture, the “micromechanics.” Developments mainly in electron microscopy (EM) (scanning, transmission, and high-voltage electron microscopy) and scanning force microscopy (SFM) opened up a wide range of experiments previously impossible, including the in situ study of micromechanical processes. These new techniques are reviewed and used to study micromechanical properties of amorphous and semi-crystalline polymers and several toughened polymers. On the basis of the detailed knowledge of micromechanical mechanisms, a new method of polymer modification becomes a realistic possibility, a method of micromechanical construction of new polymeric systems.     

A facile rheological approach for the evaluation of “super toughness point” of compatibilized HDPE / MWCNT nanocomposites

Fast and efficient determination of the optimal mechanical property of a polymer/CNT nanocomposite is crucial to develop polymer conductive nanocomposites. This work establishes a rheological approach to evaluate the super-toughness point of compatibilized high density polyethylene (HDPE)/multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) nanocomposites. Results illustrate that three types of HDPE/MWCNT nanocomposites exhibit obvious gel plateaus in the dynamic rheological curves and the gel points of nanocomposites with compatibilizer shift to the low MWCNTs loading. The super-toughness points of HDPE/MWCNT nanocomposites with compatibilizers show the correspondence with the gel points acquired from the rheological data, indicating that dynamic rheology is an effective way to determine the super-toughness points of HDPE/MWCNT nanocomposites with compatibilizers. Furthermore, unique network structure at the gel points is directly observed and the new mechanism of toughness is proposed. This study provides new insights for effective control of the structures and properties of polymer/CNT nanocomposites.     

Performance of high-temperature thermosetting polyimide composites modified with thermoplastic polyimide

The preparation of polyimide (PI) resin with high heat resistance and toughness is a significant challenge. In this study, thermoplastic PI (TPI) was used to toughen thermosetting PIs, and toughened PI (TPI/PI) blends were prepared. The modified PI resin system exhibited good thermal stability, excellent heat resistance, and high toughness. The results indicated that the TPI/PI blends maintained the curing behavior and characteristics of the PI oligomer. The T_g of the cured TPI/PI blend exceeded 395 °C, and the T_5% values were in the range of 533–563 °C, suggesting excellent thermal stability and heat resistance. The maximum impact strength was increased by 46% compared with that of pure PI, indicating the excellent toughening effect of the TPI. Carbon fiber-reinforced PI composites were prepared using the toughening system as a matrix. The compression-after-impact values of the carbon fiber-reinforced PI composites were up to 190 MPa, indicating the excellent toughness of the materials.     

可拉伸超韧水凝胶的制备和应用

综述了可拉伸超韧水凝胶的设计原理及其在组织工程和柔性电子器件领域的应用. 通过将网络结构层次、 化学结构、 增韧机制与宏观力学性能相结合, 重点讨论了单网络水凝胶、 双网络水凝胶、 纳米复合水凝胶及其它水凝胶等可拉伸超韧水凝胶的研究进展, 并总结和展望了新思路和新方向.     

壳-核结构增韧剂超高增韧非晶共聚酯的形貌和形态

研究了马来酸酐接枝的壳核结构增韧剂 (TPEg)对非晶热塑共聚酯 (PETG)的增韧和增强效果 ,并与马来酸酐接枝的纯橡胶类增韧剂 (POEg)作了对比 .TPEg对PETG具有显著的增韧效果 ,当TPEg含量由 5%增加到 1 0 %时 ,共混物就可以发生由脆性到超高韧性的快速转变 .而POEg虽然也可以使PETG发生由脆性到韧性的快速转变 ,但转变是在较高的增韧剂含量下发生的 ,这意味着共混物的抗张强度和模量损失更多 .利用扫描电镜观察、分析了随增韧剂含量的增加 ,共混物的形貌、形态的演化过程 .共混物的缺口冲击韧性与其形貌、形态之间存在很好的对应关系 .     

Measurement of the dynamic fracture toughness with notched PMMA specimen under impact loading

In the present study three-point-bend impact experiments were conducted using an instrumented Charpy pendulum with a laser displacement measurement to better understand the correlation between impact velocity and the dynamic effects observed on the load-time curves. The experiments were performed at impact velocities ranging from 1 to 4 m/s.The aim of this work is to measure the dynamic fracture toughness at high impact velocities where the classical method is limited by the inertial effects. The direct measurements of the specimen deflection are successfully used for the toughness evaluation. The results obtained with this method, which are compared to other studies, indicate that this approach seems promising for brittle materials such as PMMA.     

SUPER TOUGH GELS WITH A DOUBLE NETWORK STRUCTURE

Living tissues work with fantastic functions in soft and wet gel-like state.Thus,hydrogels have attracted much attention as excellent soft and wet materials,suitable tot making artificial organs for medical treatments.However, conventional hydrogels are mechanically too weak for practical uses.We have created double network (DN) hydrogels with extremely high mechanical strength in order to overcome this problem.DN gels are interpenetrating network (IPN) hydrogels consisting of rigid polyelectrolyte and s...     

J-integral evaluation of nanoclay-modified HDPE/PA6 microfibrillar composites

Microfibrillar composites (MFC) are polymer-polymer composites with many advantages, including good dispersion and bonding of in-situ generated fibrils. Recently, it has been shown that their performance can be enhanced by suitable addition of organophilized montmorillonite (oMMT) provided the numerous oMMT-induced effects are harmonized. This work deals with evaluation of resistance against unstable crack propagation (J-integral) in combination with Charpy and tensile impact strength methods, and SEM observation of fibrils shape and size and fracture surfaces. The results indicate that addition of PA6 inclusions and oMMT to relatively ductile HDPE reduces toughness evaluated using Charpy and J-integral. The fact that tensile impact strength is not reduced by oMMT indicates the importance of the impact testing mode for MFC. Of importance is the fact that formation of PA6 fibres reinforced with oMMT practically does not reduce toughness. Hence, the drawn oMMT-modified system with significantly higher stiffness and practically unchanged fracture resistance can be obtained. Combination of the complex effect of oMMT and in-situ fibrils reinforcement present a tool to attain polymer systems with enhanced well-balanced properties.