Crystallization behavior of polypropylene/graphene nanoplatelets nanocomposite fiber I. Isothermal crystallization kinetics

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Department of Textile and Leather, Standard Research Institute, Karaj, Iran

2 Department of Textile Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran

/amnc.2019.7.28.6

Abstract

Crystallization behavior of polypropylene/graphene nanoplatelets (PP/GnPs) nanocomposite fiber was studied by means of differential scanning calorimetry. PP/GnPs nanocomposite fibers containing different amounts of GnPs were prepared with and without a compatibilizer, maleic anhydride-grafted polypropylene (PP-g-MA), and then isothermal crystallization kinetics was investigated at different crystallization temperatures by Avrami and Lauritzen-Hoffman equations. The results show that heterogeneous nucleation occurs easily in the presence of GnPs even at higher temperatures and thereby the crystallization rate of PP in the PP/GnPs fiber increased. Moreover, upon inclusion of PP-g-MA, relative crystallinity-time curves shifted to the shorter times. The Avrami equation revealed that although GnPs and PP-g-MA have nucleation effect, the crystal growth of PP is restricted in the PP/PP-g-MA/GnPs nanocomposite fiber, increasing the crystallization half-time. Furthermore, Avrami exponent of approximately 3 for neat PP and 2 for PP/GnPs is consistent with three-dimensional crystal growth process and two-dimensional crystal growth, respectively. According to Lauritzen-Hoffman equation, the nucleation parameter decreased with the addition of GnPs, suggesting that the GnPs act as a nucleating agent and also reduced the interfacial free energy.

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References

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