The surface of natural Brazilian amazonic fibers (curauá, Ananas erectifolius) was modified with polyaniline nanoparticles, through in situ preparation of polyaniline nanoparticles in presence of the curauá fibers. This allowed for a significant increase in the electrical conductivity of the fibers (≈2 500 times). As the electrical resistivity of the modified fibers is a function of the applied external pressure, the produced composites can be used as a cheap pressure‐sensing material. The modified materials were also characterized by FT‐IR, XPS and SAXS, and the obtained results were used to explain some of the observed characteristics of the materials.magnified image
A magnetic resin based on lignin produced using the Kraft process was prepared and characterized. The material, because of its aromatic/aliphatic balance, can be used in oil-spill clean-up processes. The resin was prepared through bulk polycondensation of lignin, cashew nutshell liquid, and formaldehyde in the presence of maghemite nanoparticles. The obtained magnetic composites were studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and Small-angle X-ray scattering. Cure degree, magnetic force, and oil removal capability tests were also performed. The results show that the composites possess an elevated cure degree, besides a considerable magnetic force. The materials exhibit a good oil removal capability-the composite containing 3.3 vol % of maghemite can remove 11 parts of oil from water. V C 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 126: E304-E311, 2012
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