Issue 89, 2015

Strong nanocomposite reinforcement effects in poly(vinyl alcohol) with melanin nanoparticles

Abstract

Poly(vinyl alcohol)/melanin nanocomposites with improved tensile strength, Young's modulus and heat distortion temperature (HDT) were prepared by using simple aqueous solution mixing. When incorporated into PVA with low content (0.5–2 wt%), melanin nanoparticles dramatically enhanced the mechanical properties of PVA. With addition of 2 wt% melanin, the nanocomposites exhibited a tensile strength (σ) of 155 MPa and a Young's modulus (E) of 2.95 GPa, which were much higher than these of neat PVA. HDT was enhanced from 56.5 °C to 100 °C. TEM indicated that melanin nanoparticles were uniformly dispersed in PVA without aggregation. The strong hydrogen bonding between the –OH (or –NH–) of melanin and –OH of PVA confirmed by FTIR, which played a key factor to prevent the aggregation of nanoparticles in PVA matrix and made a contribution to the high performance of PVA.

Graphical abstract: Strong nanocomposite reinforcement effects in poly(vinyl alcohol) with melanin nanoparticles

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
25 Jun 2015
Accepted
21 Aug 2015
First published
21 Aug 2015

RSC Adv., 2015,5, 72691-72698

Strong nanocomposite reinforcement effects in poly(vinyl alcohol) with melanin nanoparticles

Y. Wang, Z. Wang, P. Ma, H. Bai, W. Dong, Y. Xie and M. Chen, RSC Adv., 2015, 5, 72691 DOI: 10.1039/C5RA12333J

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