Zein–Laponite nanocomposites with improved mechanical, thermal and barrier properties

Zein, a prolamin of corn, is a bio-renewable resource that can potentially offer alternatives for petroleum-based polymers in many applications. Nanocomposite formation with the addition of silicate nanoparticles (Laponite) to zein films, cast from 70% ethanol solutions, significantly improved the m...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of materials science 2018-05, Vol.53 (10), p.7387-7402
Main Authors: Rouf, Tahrima B., Schmidt, Gudrun, Kokini, Jozef L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biopolymers
Characterization and Evaluation of Materials
Chemistry and Materials Science
Classical Mechanics
Composites
Contact angle
Corn
Crystallography and Scattering Methods
Ethanol
Glass transition temperature
Hydrophobicity
Materials Science
Modulus of elasticity
Movies
Nanocomposites
Nanoparticles
Permeability
Polymer Sciences
Renewable resources
Silicon
Silicon compounds
Solid Mechanics
Surface energy
Water vapor
Zein
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Zein, a prolamin of corn, is a bio-renewable resource that can potentially offer alternatives for petroleum-based polymers in many applications. Nanocomposite formation with the addition of silicate nanoparticles (Laponite) to zein films, cast from 70% ethanol solutions, significantly improved the mechanical, thermal and barrier properties. Based on FTIR findings, a mechanism for zein–Laponite nanocomposite formation is proposed, which suggests Laponite nanoparticles bind to zein molecules through Si–N bond formation. Structural characteristics investigated using AFM and TEM confirmed exfoliation of the nanoparticle. The changes in the surface energy of the films were evaluated using water contact angle measurements and showed an increase in surface hydrophobicity. The Young’s modulus and tensile strength increased with nanoparticle concentration. The glass transition temperature increased, and water vapor permeability decreased with only a small amount of Laponite.
ISSN:0022-2461
1573-4803
DOI:10.1007/s10853-018-2061-6