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Zhao M, Wu HM, Chen H, Lai GH, Zhu Z, Wu JL, Kang WH, Sue HJ. Preparation of Polyethylene/α-Zirconium Phosphate Nanocomposites via a Well-Controlled Polyethylene-Grafted Interface. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2023; 39:5803-5813. [PMID: 37053455 PMCID: PMC10853957 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c00058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Revised: 03/31/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
It is a daunting task to prepare polyolefin nanocomposites that contain well-exfoliated nanoplatelets due to the nonpolar and high crystallinity nature of polyolefins. In this research, a robust approach was developed to prepare polyethylene (PE) nanocomposites by grafting maleated polyethylene (MPE) onto pre-exfoliated α-zirconium phosphate (ZrP) nanoplatelets via a simple amine-anhydride reaction to form ZrP-g-MPE. Several variables, including maleic anhydride (MA) content, MPE graft density, MPE molecular weight, and PE matrix crystallinity, were investigated to determine how they influence ZrP-g-MPE dispersion in PE. It was found that grafted PE has a different morphology and that the long PE brushes with medium graft density on ZrP can achieve sufficient chain entanglement and cocrystallization with PE matrix to stabilize and maintain ZrP-g-MPE dispersion after solution or melt mixing. This leads to enhanced Young's modulus, yield stress, and ductility. The structure-property relationship of PE/ZrP-g-MPE nanocomposites and usefulness of this study for the preparation of high-performance polyolefin nanocomposites are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mingzhen Zhao
- Department
of Material Science and Engineering, Texas
A&M University, College
Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - Hong-Mao Wu
- Polyolefin
Department of Formosa Plastics Corporation, Yunlin County 63801, Taiwan
| | - Hengxi Chen
- Department
of Material Science and Engineering, Texas
A&M University, College
Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - Guan-Hui Lai
- Department
of Material Science and Engineering, Texas
A&M University, College
Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - Zewen Zhu
- Department
of Material Science and Engineering, Texas
A&M University, College
Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - Jen-Long Wu
- Polyolefin
Department of Formosa Plastics Corporation, Yunlin County 63801, Taiwan
| | - Wen-Hao Kang
- Polyolefin
Department of Formosa Plastics Corporation, Yunlin County 63801, Taiwan
| | - Hung-Jue Sue
- Department
of Material Science and Engineering, Texas
A&M University, College
Station, Texas 77843, United States
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Afewerki S, Edlund U. Combined Catalysis: A Powerful Strategy for Engineering Multifunctional Sustainable Lignin-Based Materials. ACS NANO 2023; 17:7093-7108. [PMID: 37014848 PMCID: PMC10134738 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.3c00436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/31/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
The production and engineering of sustainable materials through green chemistry will have a major role in our mission of transitioning to a more sustainable society. Here, combined catalysis, which is the integration of two or more catalytic cycles or activation modes, provides innovative chemical reactions and material properties efficiently, whereas the single catalytic cycle or activation mode alone fails in promoting a successful reaction. Polyphenolic lignin with its distinctive structural functions acts as an important template to create materials with versatile properties, such as being tough, antimicrobial, self-healing, adhesive, and environmentally adaptable. Sustainable lignin-based materials are generated by merging the catalytic cycle of the quinone-catechol redox reaction with free radical polymerization or oxidative decarboxylation reaction, which explores a wide range of metallic nanoparticles and metal ions as the catalysts. In this review, we present the recent work on engineering lignin-based multifunctional materials devised through combined catalysis. Despite the fruitful employment of this concept to material design and the fact that engineering has provided multifaceted materials able to solve a broad spectrum of challenges, we envision further exploration and expansion of this important concept in material science beyond the catalytic processes mentioned above. This could be accomplished by taking inspiration from organic synthesis where this concept has been successfully developed and implemented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samson Afewerki
- Fibre
and Polymer Technology, KTH Royal Institute
of Technology, SE 100 44 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ulrica Edlund
- Fibre
and Polymer Technology, KTH Royal Institute
of Technology, SE 100 44 Stockholm, Sweden
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Li J, Hu C, Arreola-Vargas J, Chen K, Yuan JS. Feedstock design for quality biomaterials. Trends Biotechnol 2022; 40:1535-1549. [PMID: 36273927 DOI: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2022.09.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2022] [Revised: 09/25/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Feedstock design is crucial for lignocellulosic biomass use. Current strategies for feedstock design cannot be readily applied to improve the quality of biomass-based materials, limiting the sustainability and economics of lignocellulosic biorefineries. Recent studies have advanced the understanding of biomass structure-property relationships and discovered several characteristics, such as molecular weight, uniformity, linkage profile, and functional groups, that are critical for manufacturing diverse quality biomaterials. These discoveries call for fundamentally different strategies for feedstock development. Such strategies need to rediscover the roles of monolignol biosynthesis enzymes and leverage lignin polymerization enzymes to achieve precise control of lignin molecular structure. These innovations could transform biomass into feedstock for high-quality biomaterials, addressing essential environmental challenges and empowering the bioeconomy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinghao Li
- Department of Energy, Environmental, and Chemical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - Cheng Hu
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Jorge Arreola-Vargas
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Kainan Chen
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Joshua S Yuan
- Department of Energy, Environmental, and Chemical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA.
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Zhao M, Chen H, Zhu Z, Zhu X, Quan Y, Zhang Z, Wu HM, Wu JL, Kang WH, Wang Q, Sue HJ. Multifunctional polyethylene nanocomposites based on polyethylene-grafted α-zirconium phosphate nanoplatelets. POLYMER 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2022.125422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Li C, Lee B, Wang C, Bajpayee A, Douglas LD, Phillips BK, Yu G, Rivera-Gonzalez N, Peng BJ, Jiang Z, Sue HJ, Banerjee S, Fang L. Photopolymerized superhydrophobic hybrid coating enabled by dual-purpose tetrapodal ZnO for liquid/liquid separation. MATERIALS HORIZONS 2022; 9:452-461. [PMID: 34846413 DOI: 10.1039/d1mh01672e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Low-cost and scalable superhydrophobic coating methods provide viable approaches for energy-efficient separation of immiscible liquid/liquid mixtures. A scalable photopolymerization method is developed to functionalize porous substrates with a hybrid coating of tetrapodal ZnO (T-ZnO) and polymethacrylate, which exhibits simultaneous superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity. Here, T-ZnO serves dual purposes by (i) initiating radical photopolymerization during the fabrication process through a hole-mediated pathway and (ii) providing a hierarchical surface roughness to amplify wettability characteristics and suspend liquid droplets in the metastable Cassie-Baxter regime. Photopolymerization provides a means to finely control the conversion and spatial distribution of the formed polymer, whilst allowing for facile large-area fabrication and potential coating on heat-sensitive substrates. Coated stainless-steel meshes and filter papers with desired superhydrophobic/superoleophilic properties exhibit excellent performance in separating stratified oil/water, oil/ionic-liquid, and water/ionic-liquid mixtures as well as water-in-oil emulsions. The hybrid coating demonstrates desired mechanical robustness and chemical resistance for their long-term application in large-scale energy-efficient separation of immiscible liquid/liquid mixtures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenxuan Li
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
| | - Brian Lee
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
| | - Chenxu Wang
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Aayushi Bajpayee
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Lacey D Douglas
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Bailey K Phillips
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
| | - Guanghua Yu
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Natalia Rivera-Gonzalez
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Bo-Ji Peng
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
| | - Zhiyuan Jiang
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Hung-Jue Sue
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Sarbajit Banerjee
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Lei Fang
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, 3255 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Texas A&M University, 3003 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA
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