Chitosan and Natural Rubber Latex Biocomposite Prepared by Incorporating Negatively Charged Chitosan Dispersion

Abstract

Generally, natural rubber/chitosan (NR/CT) biocomposites could be prepared by either mixing natural rubber latex (NRL) with CT acid solution or mixing dry NR with CT powder on mixing equipment. In the present work, a new mixing method has been proposed and properties of the obtained NR/CT biocomposites are investigated. CT particles were prepared to have a negative charge that could be dispersed in water by using a ball mill before mixing with NRL. The effects of CT loading varied from 0 to 8 phr on latex properties and physical properties of NR/CT biocomposite films were focused. The results showed that the viscosity of NRL increased with increasing CT loading. With increasing CT loading from 0 to 8 phr, 300% modulus of the NR/CT biocomposite film increased, whereas the opposite trend was found for elongation at break. Additionally, the presence of CT in the biocomposite resulted in an increased elastic modulus (E’) in conjunction with enhanced antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus).

Bioresourced fillers for rubber composite sustainability: current development and future opportunities

“…The immiscibility of chitosan with rubbers makes it close to impossible to get the ultimate benefit of chitosan to develop mechanically strong rubbers 163 . Different methods can be employed to improve the compatibility of chitosan with rubbers such as maleic anhydride (MA) compatibilization 163,164 , dicumyl peroxide crosslinking 165 , epoxy crosslinking [166][167][168] , ball mill mixing 169 , plasma treatment 170 etc. Poly-electrolytic derivatives of chitosan with carboxyl (COO − ) and quaternary ammonium (NR 4 + ) groups can also enhance the dispersion of chitosan in rubbers 171 .…”

Chitosan as an Underrated Polymer in Modern Tissue Engineering

“…It turned out that the use of the above compounds improves physical properties such as vapor and oxygen penetration and water absorption. Moreover, propylene glycol improves flexibility [147].…”

Fully Biosourced, Vulcanization-Free, and Thermal-Responsive Natural Rubber Material

“…In pursuit of the sustainable development of rubber materials, many recent research studies have attempted to incorporate biosourced materials such as cellulose, − chitin, − chitosan, − and lignin − in the NR matrix to fabricate renewable NR composites. The incorporation of biomass not only reduces the usage of the conventional polluted fillers such as carbon black and endows the rubber composites with certain biodegradability but also brings enhanced mechanical properties by forming a special filler network in the rubber matrix.…”