RESUMEN
The work presents the results of a comprehensive study on obtaining compositions based on polypropylene and natural fillers modified by enzymatic preparations under high-shear forces. The experiment protocol includes determining the modification time and the ratio of water volume to the mass of natural filler (hydro modulus) during modification, which turned out to be different for each type of filler. Physical and mechanical analyses were conducted to evaluate the operational characteristics of the obtained composites, with particular attention given to comparing the modified compositions with their unmodified counterparts. The time and hydro module of the enzymatic modification of the natural fillers under consideration were investigated, which turned out to be different for each type of filler. It was found that surface modification of natural fillers improves mechanical properties; namely, the tensile strength of composites with wood and sunflower fillers increases by 10%, and the impact viscosity of composites also increases by 12% with wood and sunflower fillers. Water absorption decreases in composites, after 2 h boiling, with wood flour by 30% and with rice husk by 10%. After a 14-day test at room temperature, water absorption decreases by more than 30% in composites with rice husk. When determining the free surface energy of composites, it was found that the modification of the filler reduces the polarity of the composites in all samples, which can be interpreted as an improvement in the interaction between the filler and the polymer matrix. The findings of this research have important implications for the development of advanced polymeric materials that can be used in a wide range of applications, including automotive, aerospace, and construction industries. The results underscore the importance of surface modifications to optimize the properties of polymeric composites and provide valuable insights into the role of natural fillers in enhancing the performance of these materials.
RESUMEN
The work is aimed at the development of an energy-saving technique involving the partial carboxylation of powdered lignocellulose products from the straw of annual agricultural plants and the use of the obtained products in rubber compositions as a water-swelling filler. Lignocellulose powder from oat straw (composition: α-cellulose-77.0%, lignin-3.8%, resins and fats-1.8%) was used for carboxylation without preliminary separation into components. Microwave radiation was used to activate the carboxylation process. This reduced the reaction time by 2-3 times. The synthesized products were analyzed by IR spectroscopy, thermogravimetry and scanning electron microscopy. Industrial product sodium carboxymethylcellulose (Na-CMC) was used as a swelling filler for comparison. The swelling fillers were fractionated by the sieve method; particles with the size of 0-1 mm were used for filling rubber compounds. The amount of swelling filler was 150 parts per 100 parts of rubber (phr). Due to the high filling of rubber compounds, plasticizer Oxal T-92 was added to the composition of a number of samples to facilitate the processing and uniform distribution of ingredients. The rubber composition was prepared in two stages. In the first stage, ingredients without swelling filler were mixed with rubber on a laboratory two-roll mill to create a base rubber compound (BRC). In the second stage, the BRC was mixed with the swelling filler in a closed laboratory plasti-corder rubber mixer, the Brabender Plasti-Corder® Lab-Station. Vulcanization was carried out at 160 °C. For the obtained samples, the physical-mechanical and sorption properties were determined. It has been shown that the carboxylated powdered lignocellulose from oat straw increases the strength properties of rubber in comparison with Na-CMC. It has been shown that when the carboxylated powdered lignocellulose from oat straw is introduced into the rubber composition, the degree of rubber swelling in aqueous solutions of various mineralizations increases by 50 and 100% in comparison with a noncarboxylated lignocellulose.
