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Polylactic acid (PLA) aerogels with spider network structure, bead-like connected microsphere structure, and cluster petal structure were fabricated by precisely controlling the phase separation behavior (nucleation growth and spinodal separation) of the ternary solution system. The PLA aerogel with ideal spider network structure achieved an extremely high porosity of 96% and a high specific surface area of 114 m2/g, which rendered it with excellent triboelectric energy generation performance. [Display omitted] Aerogels with 3D porous structures have been attracting increasing attention among functional materials due to their advantages of being lightweight and high specific surface area. Precise control of the porous structure of aerogel is essential to improve its performance. In this work, polylactic acid (PLA) aerogels with distinctly different microstructures were fabricated by precisely controlling the phase separation behavior of the ternary solution system. Rheological and theoretical analyses have revealed that the interactions between polymer molecules, solvents and non-solvents play a crucial role in determining the nucleation and growth of poor olymer and rich polymer phases. By adjusting the non-solvent type and the solution composition, aerogels with spider network structure, bead-like connected microsphere structure, and cluster petal structure were obtained. Ideal spinodal phase separation conditions were obtained to produce aerogels with a homogeneous fiber network structure. The optimum PLA aerogel achieved an extremely porosity of 96 % and a high specific surface area of 114 m2/g, which rendered it with excellent triboelectric generation performance. Thus, this work provides fundamental insights into the precise regulation of the phase separation behavior and the structure of the aerogel, which can help boost the performance and expand the applications of PLA aerogels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The responses of the impact strength and structure of bisphenol A polycarbonate (PC) to aging in a 5 wt% aqueous solution of NaCl were studied in detail. The results of the Izod notched impact test showed that the impact strength decreased from 71.1 kJ/m2 to 17.5 kJ/m2 after an aging time of only 1 day in the aqueous solution of NaCl. The surface appearance of the aged PC observed by polarizing optical microscopy indicated that a large number of microvoids formed, and the size and number of these microvoids increased substantially with an increase in the aging time. The glass transition temperature, measured by differential scanning calorimetry, underwent a slight decrease after aging in the NaCl solution. In addition, no crystallization could be inferred from the heating curves. Thermal gravimetric analysis showed that the thermal decomposition temperature moved to a lower temperature, and the changes of the NaCl solution pH values indicated that hydrolysis was the dominant mechanism of degradation during aging in the aqueous solution of NaCl. Furthermore, the presence of NaCl accelerated the hydrolysis during the early stages of aging. A ductile-brittle transition caused by aging was inferred from observations of fracture surfaces using scanning electron microscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Benefitting from the wearability, ductility and portability, flexible and stretchable strain sensors display a more extensive field of applications than traditional sensors in terms of medical diagnosis, smart home, environmental monitoring and so on. However, the critical sensing performances, such as sensitivity, sensing range, stability and detection limit of flexible strain sensors still need to be improved. Microstructural optimization has been considered as an efficient strategy for tuning the performances. In this work, a carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/carbon black (CB)/thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) fibrous film (CCTF) is prepared through electrospinning, spraying and ultrasonic anchoring technique. Synergetic conductive layers by combining CNTs/CB and CB are constructed on both sides of CCTF. In virtue of the optimization of microstructures and the synergetic conductive network, the obtained CCTF possesses an ultrawide response range (up to 500 % strain), high sensitivity (gauge factor, GF up to 1516), short response/recovery time (80/80 ms), low detection limit (0.05 % strain), favorable sensing stability and long-term durability. CCTF with excellent strain sensing performances is assembled as a strain sensor, which accounts for full range human biological signal acquisition, including joint movements, muscle tension, and facial micro-expressions. This paper provides a certain reference significance for the preparation and fabrication of next-generation flexible strain sensors with high performances. A flexible strain sensor based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/carbon black (CB)/thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) film (CCTF) is fabricated through electrospinning, spraying and ultrasonic anchoring technologies. CCTF possesses excellent sensing performance due to the optimization of the microstructure, achieving a wide sensing range (up to 500 % strain), high sensitivity (GF up to 1516), low detection limit (0.05 % strain), and short response/recovery time (80/80 ms). [Display omitted] • A fibrous strain sensor with synergetic conductive networks of CNTs/CB and CB is fabricated. • The sensor possesses both a wide sensing range (500 % strain) and high sensitivity (GF up to 1516). • Low detection limit (0.05 % strain) and short response/recovery time have also been achieved. • The sensor is demonstrated to precise full range human biological signal acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multilayered polymer films are increasingly used in the daily life, but their macroscopic properties are always limited by the layer–layer interfacial compatibility. In this work, the influence of interface modification through in situ layer–layer interfacial reaction during a multilayered assembly is revealed from micro‐ to nanolayer films, based on maleated poly(vinylidene fluoride) and polyamide‐6. In the presence of interfacial reaction and confinement, layer architecture and microstructure are highly dependent on the number of layers. Specifically, for nanolayer films having smaller layer thicknesses and higher reaction extent, layer integrity is reduced with the occurrence of interfacial instabilities. Depending on the microstructural evolution from multilayer assembly, those films exhibit quantitatively different extensional rheological and dielectric properties from micro‐ to nanolayers. More importantly, dielectric spectroscopy reveals the contribution of copolymer‐rich interphases to the dielectric performance of micro/nanolayered films. Additionally, charge transport dynamics in nanolayered films also differ significantly from their microlayered counterparts. They are attributed to the strong dependence of interfacial reaction extent and resulting microstructure on the number of layers and layer thicknesses. This work clearly illustrates how the control of layer–layer interfacial reaction in micro/nanolayer assembly can tune the interfacial, microstructure, and macroscopic properties of multilayered products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, the β-nucleating agent (β-NA) filled isotactic polypropylene (iPP) parts were prepared via an overflow microinjection molding (OMM). All OMM parts show an obvious skin-core structure. With increasing the β-NA content, the shear layers with highly oriented shish-kebab structure are progressively thickened, resulting in an effective improvement in tensile strength. Specifically, a maximum tensile strength of 69.8 MPa is observed in the OMM sample with 0.2 wt% of β-NA. Moreover, the elongation at break gradually increases with increasing β-NA content, which is ascribed to the increase of β-crystal content. This study gives more insights into the microstructures of β-nucleated iPP microparts processed under intense shear flow, which could open a promising door to optimize the properties of microparts. Image 1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Highlights • CB particles were wrapped on PA6 fibrous mat to pre-construct a fine conductive network. • An ultrahigh gauge factor of 9706.9 of CB/PA6/PVA composite has been achieved. • The composite shows distinguishing sensing performances towards different strain. • Excellent repeatability and durability have also been obtained. Abstract Carbon black (CB)/polyamide 6 (PA6)/poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) electrically conductive polymer composites were fabricated by embedding conductive CB/electrospun PA6 fibrous mat into PVA matrix. Here, the electrospun PA6 fibrous network was applied as the skeleton to pre-construct conductive channels by decorating CB particles on the surfaces of PA6 fibers; the PVA was used as matrix to protect the pre-produced conductive network. For the strain sensing performances, a very high gauge factor (GF, 9706.9) has been achieved, showing a large sensitivity. Cyclic tension tests display that the conductive fibrous composite shows distinguishing sensing behaviors towards varying tensile strain. The strain sensor also has excellent repeatability and durability during long-term stretching-releasing cycles. This work provides a facile and novel strategy to develop strain sensors combined with high sensitivity and excellent stability for human health detections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stretching‐induced phase transition from tetragonal Form II to hexagonal Form I and the evolution of corresponding crystallite orientation were studied for the butene‐1/ethylene random copolymer with 1.5 mol % ethylene by using a combination of tensile test and in situ wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction. Three orientation pathways were distinguished for II‐I phase transition, including phase transition accomplishing within off‐axis oriented crystallites (Orientation Pathway 1), phase transition with simultaneous formation of highly oriented crystallites (Orientation Pathway 2), and phase transition occurring within the highly oriented crystallites already formed (Orientation Pathway 3). The kinetics of II‐I transition was correlated with the macroscopic mechanical response, which exhibits a strong dependence on orientation. In Orientation Pathway 1, the triggering of phase transition corresponds to the mechanical yielding. More interestingly, the kinetics of transition exhibits the identical dependence on stress. However, in Orientation Pathways 2 and 3, appearance of the highly oriented crystallites substantially alters transition kinetics, which is tentatively associated with the stress bearing by interstack tie chains. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2019, 57, 116–126 The stretching‐induced II‐I phase transition was studied with the combination of in situ wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction and mechanical testing. Three orientation pathways were distinguished for the phase transition in the butene‐1/ethylene random copolymer, which is determined by stretching speed and temperature. Interestingly, a master stress‐determined kinetics was found for all transitions accomplished within the off‐axis orientation. However, appearance of the highly oriented crystallites can significantly alter the transition mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advantages of segregated conductive polymer composites are greatly hampered owing to its limited preparation technology, which seriously relies on hot compression with low efficiency. The plunger type injection molding (PTIM) is employed to fabricate segregated carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/high density polyethylene (HDPE)/ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) composites in this paper, which lowers the production cycle by 45%, compared with the conventional hot compression. The morphology and conductive properties are investigated in detail. Graceful segregated conductive network and a very low percolation threshold (0.45 vol%) of the polymer composites have both been achieved. The present processing technique with short production cycle provides a fancy idea to realize segregated conductive polymer composite in mass production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Melt-stretched isotactic polypropylene (iPP) filled with different weight fractions (0, 0.1, 0.2 and 0.4 wt %) of β-nucleating agent (β-NA) was extruded via a single screw extruder with a slit die and immediately melt-stretched at the die exit. The microstructure and mechanical properties (i.e., monotonic tensile, step-cycle and stress relaxation behavior) of these samples were analyzed. Unexpectedly, the lamellar branching of β-crystal, which is similar to lamellar branching of α-crystal, is observed in melt-stretched β-nucleated iPP. More interestingly, it is found that, compared with other samples, iPP containing 0.2 wt % of β-NA has the best mechanical properties. Through thorough analysis of various structural characterizations, the improved tensile strength obtained from step-cycle tests and viscous force obtained from stress relaxation measurements for iPP with 0.2 wt% of β-NA is ascribed to lamellar branching of β-crystal. The study is an example of preparing high performance polymers via practical polymer processing methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mechanical properties and microstructure of injection molded isotactic polypropylene parts with high orientation before and after annealing are analyzed. The mechanical properties of the annealed samples are improved effectively. Through thorough analysis of various structural characterizations, a microstructural model based on the fact that the total length of long period kept constant to analyze the variation of mechanical properties is proposed. It is suggested that the increase of overall crystallinity, the recombination of crystalline phase, and the increase of amorphous phase, respectively, are beneficial for the improvements of the strength, stiffness, and toughness of annealed samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel approach, i.e. manipulating the size of incorporated polymer matrix particles, was proposed to tune the positive temperature coefficient (PTC) characteristics of carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/polypropylene (PP) composites with a segregated microstructure. For the conductive properties of CNTs/PP composites, the percolation threshold decreased from 1.32 vol% to 0.44 vol% when the matrix particle size enlarged from 20 to 1200 µm, showing an inverse correlation effect. The controllable PTC characteristics in resistivity are attributed to the microstructure development of conductive pathways and the heat-induced volume expansion of polymer matrix particles. An extremely high PTC material has also been achieved through this method. The present work provides an effective route to acquire a tunable temperature-resistivity sensor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liquid-sensing behaviors of carbon black (CB)/polyamide 6 (PA6)/high-density polyethylene (HDPE) composite containing conductive electrospun fibrous network were investigated by detecting electrical resistance variations toward different solvents. The material exhibited a good sensing selectivity, which could be predicted by Flory-Huggins interaction parameter χ . In immersion-drying runs (IDRs), the composite showed a large liquid-sensing responsivity but poor reproducibility toward 'good solvent' xylene. After long-term immersion treatment in xylene, the metastable conductive pathways became stabilized, and a better reproducibility was finally achieved. Absorption/desorption equilibrium state of the composite in 'moderate' or 'poor' solvents was reached more easily than that in good solvent. Additionally, more rapid response, higher sensing responsivity, and better reproducibility of the composite in 'moderate solvent' cyclohexane were observed at a higher environment temperature. These results indicated that liquid-sensing behaviors of conductive polymer composites could be tailored by tuning the microstructure or utilizing the pretreatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A distinct skin-core-water-channel structure was formed in water-assisted injection molded low molecular weight high density polyethylene. A large number of well-developed banded spherulites were observed in core region. Two types of shish-kebabs, i.e., shish-kebabs without and with twisted lamellae, were appeared in both skin and water-channel region. The results imply that the formation mechanisms of twisted lamellae in banded spherulites and shish-kebabs are different, but both depend on the level of applied shear stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydroxyl functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (H-MWNTs) were silanized using 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) in order to improve the dispersion and interfacial interaction in composites. MWNT/polycarbonate (PC) composites filled with H-MWNTs and silanized MWNTs (S-MWNTs) were fabricated by melt mixing and injection molding. Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) and energy dispersion X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) were employed to prove the presence of APTES on the surface of S-MWNTs. In addition, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was used to evaluate the relative amount of introduced APTES. The microstructure and mechanical property of both composites were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), tensile test and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). The SEM and TEM images showed that S-MWNT/PC composites had better dispersion and interfacial adhesion than H-MWNT/PC composites. A reinforcing and toughening effect on tensile behavior of composites was obtained after silane functionalization. The storage modulus of composites increased markedly as a function of MWNTs content, especially for the composites with S-MWNTs. In summary, the silanization can improve the dispersion of MWNTs and the interfacial adhesion between MWNTs and PC so as to enhance the mechanical properties of composites. POLYM. COMPOS., 37:1914-1923, 2016. © 2015 Society of Plastics Engineers [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, isotactic polypropylene (iPP) melt was slowly extruded through a slit die of a single-screw extruder. Once the iPP melt left the die, it was uniaxially stretched at different stretching rates (SRs). Via this process its microstructure can be manipulated, it was subsequently investigated by wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), polarized optical microscopy (POM), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Furthermore, the mechanical properties (including tensile strength, modulus, toughness, and strain-hardening) were investigated. The results showed that the tensile strength and modulus of the melt-stretched iPP films gradually increased with increasing SRs. In addition, the toughness and elongation at break showed maximum values for iPP films melt-stretched at 30 cm/min. Moreover, compared with other melt-stretched films, the iPP films melt-stretched at 90 cm/min exhibited an obvious strain-hardening behavior at lower strain. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Polymer processing generally plays a crucial role in determining the development of microstructure in the fabricated product. In this paper, isotactic polypropylene (iPP) containing 0.1 wt% β-nucleating agent was extruded via a slit die and immediately melt-stretched upon various stretching rates (SR) at the die exit. The microstructure of β-nucleated iPP samples was investigated using two-dimensional wide-angle X-ray diffraction and small-angle X-ray scatterings (2D-WAXD/SAXS) measurements. It is observed that, no matter what SR is, lamellar branching of β-form crystal is formed in melt-stretched samples, which is scarcely reported in open literatures. A method is proposed to calculate the crystallinity of daughter lamellae in β-crystal ( X). It is found that X decreases with increasing SR, indicating that lamellar branching of β-form crystal is restrained by higher SR. Such case should be attributed to the denser-oriented structures (e.g., shish) induced by higher SR, leaving a confined space between adjacent-oriented structures for the growth of daughter lamellae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Under the assistance of carbon fibers (CFs) with a large aspect ratio, an evident reduction in the percolation threshold of a segregated carbon black (CB)/polypropylene (PP) conductive polymer composite (CPC) has been achieved. The origin of the ultra-low percolation threshold 0.94vol% is ascribed to the design of a shish–calabash-like conductive network, where the CFs function as bridges between the segregated CB particles and CB particles act as calabashs contributing to the conductive framework. This interesting microstructure causes a synergistic effect on the conductive properties. A model is proposed to evaluate the percolation behavior of the unique CF/CB/PP composite. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this study, macroscopic polyamide 66 (PA66) nanofiber bundles were successfully electrospun using two electrode pins as collector. One of the pins can rotate with a speed of 300rpm. Scanning electron microscope, tensile test, wide-angle X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry were employed to characterize the arrangement of electrospun nanofibers in bundle, tensile property and microstructure of electrospun nanofiber bundles. Results show that the collector pin׳s rotating speed not only significantly influences the arrangement of nanofibers in bundle but also the crystallinity and porosity of nanofiber bundles, which further influence the tensile strength and failure strain of nanofiber bundles. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The strain-sensing behaviors of carbon black (CB)/polypropylene (PP) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/PP conductive composites prepared by the vacuum-assisted hot compression were studied and compared. When ten extension-retraction cycles were applied, it was found for CB/PP, the value of the maximum responsivity (Δ R/ R, Δ R-the instantaneous variation of the resistance during the test, R-the original resistance) decreased gradually with increasing the cycle number, but it began to rise from the seventh cycle. The value of the min Δ R/ R increased during the whole test. While for CNTs/PP, both the values of the max and min Δ R/ R decreased rapidly. It is suggested that the different behaviors mainly depend on the distinction in the dimension of the conductive fillers and the preparation technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Electrically conductive carbon black (CB)/polyamide 6 (PA6)/high density polyethylene (HDPE) composite with a low percolation threshold was fabricated by embedding conductive CB/PA6 membrane into the HDPE matrix. The CB/PA6 membrane was prepared by localizing CB particles on the surfaces of the electrospun PA6 fibrous membrane by a dip-coating method. Percolation threshold of this CB/PA6/HDPE composite was only ca. 4.3vol%, showing a considerable reduction compared to that of the common CB/HDPE (8.5vol%). Through the present method, a conductive polymer composite with enhanced processability and lowered cost has been achieved with extremely low loading of PA6 (1.5vol%). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Ultra-thin LLDPE parts were prepared by microinjection molding. Mechanical properties and microstructure of samples before and after annealing at different temperatures (60, 80, 100 °C) were analyzed. Tensile test indicates that toughness has been enhanced at least 7 times after being annealed in parallel with significant increase of tensile strength. Microstructure characterizations, including differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), scanning electronic microscope (SEM) and polarized Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were performed to investigate the variations of microstructure and to further establish the relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties. It is suggested that the increased crystallinity and perfection of crystals upon annealing are beneficial to the reinforcement. Formation of a stronger physical cross-linking network due to the increase of connecting points is in favor of the enhanced strength as well. Moreover, the notable improvement of toughness in the annealed ultra-thin LLDPE parts is ascribed to combined effects of microvoids developed in both the annealing and deformation process. This work offers a simple approach to prepare ultra-thin LLDPE parts with excellent toughness and strength. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Resistivity variations of carbon black (CB)/polypropylene (PP) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/PP conductive polymer composites subjected to different tensile speeds were studied with the same maximum strain 3%. With increasing tensile speed, the responsivity (ΔR/R0, R0is the original resistance, ΔR is instantaneous change in resistance) shows an obvious increase for both CPCs, although the increase degree is different. CB/PP has a higher responsivity than that of CNTs/PP during the tension and unloading process. It is proposed that the difference depends mainly on the distinction in the microstructure of conductive fillers and the interaction between the fillers and the matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Macroscopically aligned isotactic polypropylene (iPP) fibers with different diameters ranging from 0.7 to 13.2 μm were successfully fabricated by high-temperature solution electrospinning using an infrared (IR) heating system. Polarized optical microscope (POM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarized Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) were employed to characterize the surface morphology and microstructure of the electrospun fibers. From SEM images, three macroscopically structural models have been found: (1) cylindrical fibers, (2) twisted fibers and (3) beaded fibers. Interestingly, regardless of fiber's shape and size, they (especially for cylindrical fibers) exhibit well-defined self-similar morphology. That is, the tertiary, secondary and primary morphology are similar with each other. Thermally induced phase separation (TIPS) is the most pertinent origin to explain the formation of self-similar morphology. WAXD and DSC results show that α-form crystal prevails in the electrospun iPP fibers. For comparison, the solution-cast film was also prepared under the same conditions as those adopted in electrospinning except that the voltage was 0 kV. Compared with the solution-cast film, lower crystallinity, smaller average crystallite size and higher melting point are achieved in the electrospun iPP fibers. The results of polarized FTIR spectra demonstrate that the macroscopically aligned electrospun fibers are highly oriented along the fiber's longitudinal axis at molecular level. Furthermore, when the electrospun iPP fibers were embed in iPP matrix, surface-induced crystallization is significantly enhanced and finally develops into transcrystalline layer which can be even revived after recrystallization. As a result, it is logical that long-lived thermodynamically stable structure has been formed in the electrospun iPP fiber. Combined with FTIR result, the α-form crystal formed in the fiber is conjectured to be a kind of oriented structure with thermodynamically long-lived stability which is similar to "shish-kebab" structure. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]