An efficient fibrous catalyst for the biodiesel fuel production has been synthesized by radiation-induced graft polymerization of 4-chloromethylstyrene onto a nonwoven polyethylene (NWPE) fabric followed by amination with trimethylamine (TMA) and further treatment with NaOH. The degree of grafting of NWPE fabric and TMA group density of fibrous catalyst could easily and reproducibly be controlled within a range of up to 340% and 3.6 mmol-TMA/g-catalyst, respectively. In the transesterification of triglycerides and ethanol using the synthesized fibrous catalyst, the conversion ratio of triglycerides reached 95% after 4 h reaction at 50°C
In this work, to fabricate a novel composite consisting of chitosan/poly-lactic acid doped with graphene oxide (CS/PLA-GO), composites were prepared via solution blending method to create various compositions of CS and PLA (90/10, 70/30 and 50/50CS/PLA-GO). Graphene oxide (GO) was added into a PLA solution prior to blending it with chitosan (CS). The surface morphology and structural properties of synthesized composites were characterized using FT-IR, SEM and XRD analysis. The performances of synthesized composites on thermal strength, mechanical strength, water absorption, and microbial activity were also evaluated through standard testing methods. The morphology of 70/30CS/PLA-GO became smoother with the addition of GO due to enhanced interfacial adhesion between CS, PLA and GO. The presence of GO has also improved the miscibility of CS and PLA and has superior properties compared to CS/PLA composites. Moreover, the addition of GO has boosted the thermal stability of the composite, with a significant enhancement of Td and Tg. The highest Td and Tg were accomplished at 389 °C and 76.88 °C, respectively, for the 70/30CS/PLA-GO composite in comparison to the CS and PLA that recorded Td at 272 °C and 325 °C and Tg at 61 °C and 60 °C, respectively. In addition, as reinforcement, GO provided a significant influence on the tensile strength of composites where the tensile modulus showed remarkable improvement compared to pure CS and CS/PLA composites. Furthermore, CS/PLA-GO composites showed excellent water-barrier properties. Among other compositions, 70/30CS/PLA revealed the greatest decrement in water absorption. From the antibacterial results, it was observed that 90/10CS/PLA-GO and 70/30CS/PLA-GO showed an inhibitory effect and had wide inhibition zones which were 8.0 and 8.5 mm, respectively, against bacteria Bacillus Subtillis B29.
Malaysian kenaf bast fiber was treated by acidic chlorite to be applied for a trunk polymer radiation-induced graft copolymerization. The delignification conditions such as temperature, reaction time, and sodium chlorite (NaClO 2 ) loading were optimized from the viewpoints of density, tensile strength, and reactivity of grafting. It was found that delignification condition at 80 C for 6 h with 0.5% NaClO 2 gave 91% of lignin removal from the kenaf bast fibers. In this case, the density, fineness, and tensile strength of the kenaf fiber decreased about 46, 44, and 87%, respectively. Reactivity of grafting was evaluated using 4-chloromethyl styrene to obtain widely available precursor materials. The partial delignified kenaf with residual lignin less than 2% resulted in degree of grafting of 134%, which is enough for precursor materials.
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