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Heterogeneous Materials Based on Polymers

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymeric Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2024) | Viewed by 3014

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Polymer Engineering Group (GIP), Polymer Science and Technology Institute (ICTP), Spanish Council for Scientific Research (CSIC), 28006 Madrid, Spain
Interests: polymers and environment; heterogeneous materials based on polymers; polyolefins; interfacial agents; interphase; interface; functionalization; plastic wastes; blends; composites
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Polymer Engineering Group (GIP), Polymer Science and Technology Institute (ICTP), Spanish Council for Scientific Research (CSIC), 28006 Madrid, Spain
Interests: polymers and environment; heterogeneous materials based on polymers; polyolefins; interfacial agents; interphase; interface; functionalization; plastic wastes; blends; composites
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is dedicated to Heterogeneous Materials Based on Polymers. At this point, it is important to remark that it is the long-range elasticity, high strength, and high viscosity which define the macromolecular nature of organic polymers, depending on the inter-molecular forces’ intensity. These properties emerge as a direct consequence of the size and constitution of the covalent structures of the macromolecules, determined by the interchain interactions at the distance of a primary bond (thermosetting polymers), or by secondary interactions between sufficiently large polymer chains able to induce strong interchain forces that endow the matter with enough structural integrity to be useful and handled (thermoplastic polymers), which—conversely to thermosetting polymers—can soften and flow under temperature and shear fields. The combination of these polymers with other substances (fillers, reinforcements, fibers, other polymers, et cetera) with the aim of obtaining lower costs in a shorter time frame, rather than simply correcting an undesired property is still a growing and promising research direction, and is being applied to obtain novel outstanding materials. In any case, it is the role played by the contact regions between the components (the interphase) which governs and defines the ultimate properties of the material. The inter-phase is defined as that dynamic and finite spatial region between the borders of each couple of different phases which are microscopically in contact. Transport phenomena occur at the nanoscale level through the atoms (or small groups of atoms) placed there, and are responsible for the momentum, mass, and energy balances between both phases. On this basis, the study of the interphases with the aim of controlling the properties of any given multi-component system has been established, giving rise to the concept of tailor-made materials. In any case, from a heterogeneous polymer-based materials perspective following either top-down or bottom-up approaches, the strategy of designing materials rather than designing with materials emerges.

Dr. Jesús-María García-Martínez
Dr. Emilia P. Collar
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • polymer composites
  • polymer blends
  • interfaces
  • interphases
  • coupling agents
  • interfacial agents
  • compatibilization
  • reinforcement
  • fillers
  • thermoplastic composites
  • thermoset composites

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 6959 KiB  
Article
Systematic Evaluation of Adhesion and Fracture Toughness in Multi-Material Fused Deposition Material Extrusion
by Md Abu Jafor, Neshat Sayah, Douglas E. Smith, Gianni Stano and Trevor J. Fleck
Materials 2024, 17(16), 3953; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17163953 - 9 Aug 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1125
Abstract
Material extrusion (MEX) additive manufacturing has successfully fabricated assembly-free structures composed of different materials processed in the same manufacturing cycle. Materials with different mechanical properties can be employed for the fabrication of bio-inspired structures (i.e., stiff materials connected to soft materials), which are [...] Read more.
Material extrusion (MEX) additive manufacturing has successfully fabricated assembly-free structures composed of different materials processed in the same manufacturing cycle. Materials with different mechanical properties can be employed for the fabrication of bio-inspired structures (i.e., stiff materials connected to soft materials), which are appealing for many fields, such as bio-medical and soft robotics. In the present paper, process parameters and 3D printing strategies are presented to improve the interfacial adhesion between carbon fiber-reinforced nylon (CFPA) and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), which are extruded in the same manufacturing cycle using a multi-material MEX setup. To achieve our goal, a double cantilever beam (DCB) test was used to evaluate the mode I fracture toughness. The results show that the application of a heating gun (assembled near the nozzle) provides a statistically significant increase in mean fracture toughness energy from 12.3 kJ/m2 to 33.4 kJ/m2. The underlying mechanism driving this finding was further investigated by quantifying porosity at the multi-material interface using an X-ray computed tomography (CT) system, in addition to quantifying thermal history. The results show that using both bead ironing and the hot air gun during the printing process leads to a reduction of 24% in the average void volume fraction. The findings from the DCB test and X-ray CT analysis agree well with the polymer healing theory, in which an increased thermal history led to an increased fracture toughness at the multi-material interface. Moreover, this study considers the thermal history of each printed layer to correlate the measured debonding energy with results obtained using the reptation theory. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heterogeneous Materials Based on Polymers)
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11 pages, 5550 KiB  
Article
A Study on a Polymeric Foam Based on Pulse Proteins and Cellulose Fibrils
by Marcela Jarpa-Parra, Sergio Moraga-Bustos, Eduardo Gutiérrez-Turner and Gipsy Tabilo-Munizaga
Materials 2023, 16(14), 4965; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16144965 - 12 Jul 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1053
Abstract
Biofoams are a challenge for scientists in terms of innovation. Incorporation of cellulose fibrils (CF), might help improve the microstructure of foams, thus this study focuses on studying the impact of CF on the foaming properties and rheology of lentil protein (LP) foams [...] Read more.
Biofoams are a challenge for scientists in terms of innovation. Incorporation of cellulose fibrils (CF), might help improve the microstructure of foams, thus this study focuses on studying the impact of CF on the foaming properties and rheology of lentil protein (LP) foams at various pH and CF concentrations. Additionally, LP-CF mixtures were transformed into solid foams, and their microstructure, physical properties, and morphology were evaluated. CF concentration significantly impacted on LP-CF foam properties, primarily due to high viscosity values. Increased CF concentration resulted in improved FS values (up to 77 min) at all pH values. This is likely attributed to associative interactions and coacervates formation. Also, foam microstructure could be related to apparent viscosity, suggesting the role of viscosity in preserving the integrity of the wet foam structure during freezing and lyophilization processes. However, elevated viscosity values might negatively impact properties such as foaming capacity and produce denser microstructures. The microstructure and morphology analysis revealed that certain foams exhibited a sponge-like structure with open pores and semi-spherical shapes, supported by CF fibers extending and forming layers. However, the structure itself was irregular. While others exhibited non-uniform, irregular pore size, and shape, along with a denser structure. These findings contribute to understanding the behavior of LP-CF mixtures, although additional investigations on mechanical properties, biodegradability, and hydrophobicity are necessary to reach their full potential for various applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heterogeneous Materials Based on Polymers)
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