Journal of Applied Polymer Science最新文献

{"title":"PVDF-Based Sandwich-Structured Dielectrics Synergistically Constructed With High-Breakdown-Strength and High-Polarization Layers","authors":"Lu Hongwei,&nbsp;Fang Qi,&nbsp;Liu Xiyi,&nbsp;Yang Shijia,&nbsp;Su Weitao","doi":"10.1002/app.71600","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71600","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>This study fabricated Ti₃C₂T_<i>x</i> MXene/poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) (MXP) films, polydopamine (PDA)-modified MXene/PVDF (PMP) films, and sandwich-structured (APA) composite films via spin-coating, with poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)/PVDF as the outer layers and PMP as the intermediate layer. Conductive MXene nanosheets formed percolation networks or microcapacitors, significantly improving the dielectric constant (<i>ε</i>_r) of composites at low loading. At 1.0 wt% MXene, MXP exhibited an <i>ε</i>_r of 19.648, a 240% increase compared to pure PVDF, but with reduced breakdown strength. To address this trade-off, PDA surface-modified MXene was used to prepare PMP nanodielectrics, simultaneously enhancing <i>ε</i>_r and breakdown strength. PMP-0.1 showed an <i>ε</i>_r of 9.5 (16% improvement), breakdown strength of 442.4 MV/m (9.3% improvement), and energy storage density of 5.37 J/cm³ (34.9% improvement) vs. PVDF, with lower dielectric loss than MXP. APA-0.1 achieved an energy storage density of 7.33 J/cm³, representing increases of approximately 84% and 36.5% compared with PVDF and PMP-0.1, respectively. PMMA and PDA reduced film loss and improved charge–discharge efficiency, providing a convenient method for high-performance polymer-based dielectric composites.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 47","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149367439","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Dicarboxymethyl Cellulose-Based Mixed-Matrix Membrane Adsorbers: Preparation, Characterization, and Protein Retention Performance","authors":"Diana Gago,&nbsp;Giuseppe Di Luca,&nbsp;Francesca Russo,&nbsp;Ricardo Chagas,&nbsp;Luísa Maria Ferreira,&nbsp;Francesco Galiano,&nbsp;Isabel Coelhoso,&nbsp;Alberto Figoli","doi":"10.1002/app.71586","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71586","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This study reports, for the first time, the incorporation of dicarboxymethyl cellulose (DCMC) into mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs). DCMC is a functionalized cellulose derivative with demonstrated adsorption of positively charged compounds. However, its incorporation into membranes has not previously been investigated. Polyethersulfone (PES) MMMs were prepared using dimethyl isosorbide as a green solvent via non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) and a combined vapor-induced phase separation (VIPS)-NIPS approach, with varying DCMC filler concentrations. Characterization showed that all membranes possessed a similar morphology, comprising a denser top layer and a porous bottom layer, with finger-like structures and macrovoids spanning the cross-section. Pore size measurements varied from 0.14 to 0.43 μm, corresponding to the lower end of the microfiltration range. Filtration experiments using a model cationic protein demonstrated that DCMC incorporation enhanced separation efficiency through the introduction of carboxylic functional groups. The DCMC-modified membranes achieved up to 80% retention of the model protein after six filtration cycles, attributed to electrostatic attraction between the filler and the model cationic protein. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of incorporating DCMC into membrane structures and provide proof of concept for the further development of DCMC-based membranes for charge-selective applications.</p>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 47","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/app.71586","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149367440","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mechanism of Choline Chloride/Glycerol/Lysine Deep Eutectic Solvent Assisted Microwave Irradiation on Natural Rubber","authors":"Shaoming Li,&nbsp;Yukun Zhou,&nbsp;Ran Li,&nbsp;Yaqi Ge,&nbsp;Lei Guo,&nbsp;Haichao Liu,&nbsp;Chuansheng Wang,&nbsp;Yao Xiao","doi":"10.1002/app.71597","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71597","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>In this article, a biodegradable ternary deep eutectic solvent (CGL-DES) was prepared by choline chloride as a hydrogen bond acceptor and glycerol and lysine as hydrogen bond donors. CGL-DES and latex were pre-expanded and dried by microwave irradiation technology. FTIR confirmed that the internal components of CGL-DES constructed a hydrogen bond network, and this network formed interfacial hydrogen bonds with proteins in natural rubber latex, achieving green functional modification of rubber. The results indicated that the synergistic effect of CGL-DES and microwave irradiation enhanced the plasticity retention index of raw rubber and the processing flowability of mixed rubber. Compared with the standard natural rubber (SVR 3L) composites, the composites prepared by CGL-DES combined with microwave increased crosslinking density, tensile strength, and aging coefficient by 37%, 21%, and 22%, respectively. The deep eutectic solvent and microwave are biodegradable materials and clean energy, respectively, providing new ideas for the green preparation of high-performance natural rubber raw materials.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 47","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149367460","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Silane-Functionalized Recycled Chopped Carbon Fibers for Interlaminar Toughening of Hybrid GFRP Laminates","authors":"Subhankar Das,&nbsp;Rahul Kumar,&nbsp;M. S. Goyat,&nbsp;Sudipta Halder,&nbsp;Nazrul Islam Khan","doi":"10.1002/app.71585","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71585","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Laminates made from carbon- and glass-fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP) possess excellent specific strength and stiffness, making them suitable for structural applications. However, the high cost of virgin carbon fibers has increased interest in using recycled or chopped carbon fibers (CCFs) recovered from waste CFRP. In the present study, both untreated and silane-functionalized CCFs were incorporated into an epoxy matrix at loadings of 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 wt%, and used to fabricate hybrid glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) laminates. Silane-treated CCFs improved laminate performance by enhancing compatibility between the CCF and the epoxy, promoting stress transfer at the interface, bridging and deflecting microcracks, and suppressing interlaminar delamination. At 0.5 wt% S-CCF, reinforcement was effective due to relatively uniform dispersion, whereas higher CCF loadings could form CCF-rich regions and local stress concentrations, reducing strength and toughness. The 0.5 wt% S-CCF laminates showed the best performance. Compared with control GFRP, tensile strength, tensile modulus, and toughness increased by about 27%, 4%, and 39%, respectively, while flexural strength and short-beam shear strength improved by 38% and 13%. These results demonstrate that surface-modified recycled CCFs can enhance mechanical performance and delamination resistance in a sustainable and potentially cost-effective manner.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 47","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149367451","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Preparation of Ultra-Salt-Tolerant OEMA Hydrophobic Modified Viscoelastic Profile Control Gel and Study of Its Salt Thickening Characteristics and Plugging Performance","authors":"Jinhao Gao,&nbsp;Jintian Wu,&nbsp;Yuyu Xue,&nbsp;Zhijian Li,&nbsp;Lei Wang,&nbsp;Peng Li,&nbsp;Yishan Weng,&nbsp;Yufei Zhang,&nbsp;Xinnan Ran,&nbsp;Wei Ji","doi":"10.1002/app.71593","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71593","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>To address the challenges of strong matrix heterogeneity, a limited flooding sweep range, and low oil displacement efficiency in high-salinity and high-water-cut tight reservoirs, an amphiphilic monomer (OEMA) was introduced via aqueous dispersion polymerization to synthesize a profile control agent (SMAA-n) with excellent water dispersibility, salt-thickening properties, and viscoelasticity. The storage modulus of SMAA-n exceeds the loss modulus, indicating that the profile control agent is an elastic fluid. In a salt ion environment (K⁺, Na⁺, Ca²⁺, and Mg²⁺), viscosity increases with OEMA content, producing salt-thickening characteristics alongside good thixotropic recovery. The hydrophobic association between the octadecyl long chains enable SMAA-n to form a dynamic network structure capable of inversion, achieving plugging via salt thickening in matrix pores, particle adaptive pore matching, and shear deformation. Introducing OEMA into the synthetic profile control agent enhances the core plugging rate, with the average value exceeding 85.0%. The final oil recovery rate of SMAA-5% is 47.32%, considerably higher than that of unmodified SMA (36.52%). The salt thickening and strong plugging of SMAA-n provide a new approach for profile control and flooding to enhance oil recovery in high-salinity, high-water-cut heterogeneous reservoirs.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 47","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149367506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effect of Dispersion Morphology of Graphene in Polyoxymethylene/Polyurethane Multiphase System on Wear Resistance Properties","authors":"Yiting Que,&nbsp;Xingrui Su,&nbsp;Hongli Xie,&nbsp;Shibing Bai","doi":"10.1002/app.71559","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71559","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Polyoxymethylene (POM) features inherent self-lubrication, excellent chemical resistance, and low cost, making it a common matrix for wear-resistant polymer composites. In the modification research of POM, the thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer (TPU) toughening of POM has been industrialized, yet it only slightly improves wear resistance. Therefore, in this study, solid-state shear milling technology (S³M) was used to modify the multi-phase system of POM/TPU with graphene, changing the dispersion degree of graphene in both phases to make a significant enhancement of wear-resistant properties of the composites. The mechanism of its wear-resistant properties was investigated. The results showed that, after graphene was decarboxylated via silane coupling agent KH-570, S³M drives graphene to migrate from the TPU dispersed phase into the POM continuous matrix. The spherical POM/TPU hybrid microstructures are consequently formed on friction interfaces, acting as microscale ball bearings converting sliding friction into rolling friction. This structural evolution significantly lowers the friction coefficient and specific wear rate of composites. Additionally, due to the decarboxylation of graphene, the thermal properties of the multiphase composites relatively increase. The friction coefficient is reduced from 0.32 to 0.15, and the specific wear rate is reduced from 6.28 × 10⁻⁶ mm³/(N·m) to 5.5 × 10⁻⁶ mm³/(N·m), which greatly improves the wear performance.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 46","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149311937","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Analysis of the Influence of Coated PVDF-Al2O\u0000 3/PP Modified Separator on the Performance of Lithium-Ion Batteries","authors":"Zhen Zhu,&nbsp;Yong Lu,&nbsp;Jianfei Tu,&nbsp;Chen Wang,&nbsp;Xinyong Liu,&nbsp;Jiacun Lu,&nbsp;Hongyuan Yang","doi":"10.1002/app.71572","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71572","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>This article uses a polypropylene separator for lithium-ion batteries as the substrate, and evenly coats an inorganic slurry mixed with 100–200 nm alumina powder, binder, and dispersant on both sides of the separator to obtain a new type of ceramic coating separator. The thermal stability test of the separator shows that under a high temperature environment of 160°C, the thermal shrinkage rate of the inorganic ceramic coated separator is 5.0%, while the thermal shrinkage rate of the polypropylene separator is 11.67%, indicating that the coated separator has excellent thermal stability. Due to the high specific surface area of inorganic nano alumina particles, the coated separator can store more electrolytes compared to polypropylene separators at the same size. The LiFePO₄-Li system battery was assembled using ceramic coated separators and subjected to 1C charge discharge cycling tests. The results showed that the capacity retention rate of the battery assembled with coated separators after 100 cycles was 65.87%, which was higher than that of the battery assembled with polypropylene separators (60.42%), and could effectively improve the capacity retention performance of lithium-ion batteries.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 46","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149312514","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Design a Rigid-Flexible Interfacial Structure for Improving the Interfacial and Mechanical Properties of CF/PAEK Composites","authors":"Xiang Chen,&nbsp;Jiawei Zhong,&nbsp;Yonglin Wang,&nbsp;Wenzhen Qin","doi":"10.1002/app.71578","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71578","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The weak interfacial adhesion between carbon fiber (CF) and polyaryletherketone (PAEK) matrix has become a core bottleneck restricting CF/PAEK composites from fully exerting their intrinsic mechanical properties. Herein, a rigid-flexible sizing agent is designed to enhance the interfacial adhesion between CF and PAEK matrix, which contains the PEKC-NaPSS and multi-dimensional hybrid carbon nanoparticles consisting of 1D carboxylated carbon nanotubes (CNT-COOH) and 2D aminated graphene nanoplatelets (GnP-NH₂). The surface reactivity, roughness, and resin wettability of CF are effectively optimized by this (CNT/GnP)/PEKC hybrid sizing agent. When the mass fraction of hybrid carbon nanoparticles in the sizing agent is optimized to 1%, the flexural strength, flexural modulus, and ILSS of the modified CF/PAEK composites reach 615.46 MPa, 51.23 GPa, and 61.44 MPa, up 65.28%, 65.01%, and 43.22% compared with desized CF reinforced composites, respectively. The enhanced performance is mainly ascribed to the structural complementarity and combined contribution effect of 1D CNT-COOH and 2D GnP-NH₂, which builds a multi-scale and multi-level interfacial network between CF and PAEK matrix, realizing efficient interfacial stress transfer and blocking crack growth and propagation. This work provides a facile and efficient interfacial modification strategy with potential for further development.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 46","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149312515","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effect of Glass Fiber and Mineral Filler Reinforcement on the Dielectric Relaxation and Structural Dynamics of PA6 Hybrid Composites","authors":"Sevim Alkan,&nbsp;Deniz Deger,&nbsp;Kemal Ulutas,&nbsp;Deniz Bozoglu,&nbsp;Sahin Yakut","doi":"10.1002/app.71583","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71583","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;p&gt;PA6 (Polyamide 6) hybrid composites (20% glass fiber (GF) and 20% mineral filler mixture of talc and CaCO&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt;) are studied using dielectric spectroscopy (DS) to determine dielectric and structural properties, and to highlight the effect of the reinforcement, filler material (glass fiber, talc, and CaCO&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt; mixture), and thickness. FT-IR and SEM characterization techniques are applied to reveal molecular and morphological structure. Dielectric measurements are performed over a temperature range of 223–373 K and a frequency interval of 1–10&lt;sup&gt;6&lt;/sup&gt; Hz. Dielectric and structural parameters have been analyzed by Cole-Cole and Vogel-Fulcher-Tamman (VFT) models, respectively, for sample thicknesses of 0.2, 0.75, and 2.5 mm. The results reveal the Maxwell-Wagner-Sillars (MWS), &lt;i&gt;α&lt;/i&gt;-, &lt;i&gt;β&lt;/i&gt;-, and &lt;i&gt;γ&lt;/i&gt;-relaxations. Besides, &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;math&gt;\u0000 &lt;semantics&gt;\u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;msub&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mi&gt;β&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mi&gt;m&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 &lt;/msub&gt;\u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;annotation&gt;$$ {beta}_{mathrm{m}} $$&lt;/annotation&gt;\u0000 &lt;/semantics&gt;&lt;/math&gt; and &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;math&gt;\u0000 &lt;semantics&gt;\u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;msubsup&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mi&gt;β&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mi&gt;m&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mo&gt; &lt;/mo&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mo&gt;′&lt;/mo&gt;\u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;/msubsup&gt;\u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;annotation&gt;$$ {beta}_{mathrm{m}}^{prime } $$&lt;/annotation&gt;\u0000 &lt;/semantics&gt;&lt;/math&gt; are defined to emphasize the effect of moisture absorption. It is detected that reinforcement increased the glass transition temperature (&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;math&gt;\u0000 &lt;semantics&gt;\u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;msub&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mi&gt;T&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;mi&gt;g&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 &lt;/msub&gt;\u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;annotation&gt;$$ {mathrm{T}}_{mathrm{g}} $$&lt;/annotation&gt;\u0000 &lt;/semantics&gt;&lt;/math&gt;) related to the unplasticization effect by 20 and 40 K for varying thicknesses. &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;math&gt;\u0000 &lt;semantics&gt;\u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 ","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 46","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149311502","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Morphology-Assisted Strengthening in NR/HDPE Composites: Nano- vs. Microfiller Effects","authors":"Hafizal Yazid,&nbsp;Sahrim Ahmad,&nbsp;Haniza Yazid,&nbsp;Muhammad Rawi Mohamed Zin","doi":"10.1002/app.71577","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/app.71577","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The tensile strength of semicrystalline polymer composites is commonly correlated with crystallinity; however, this approach does not capture the size-dependent strengthening behavior observed in nanocomposites. In this work, natural rubber/high-density polyethylene (NR/HDPE) composites filled with micro- and nanoscale boron carbide were investigated to establish the relationship between filler size, crystalline morphology, and tensile properties. SAXS showed no evidence of significant agglomeration, while at 2 wt% filler loading, FESEM revealed pronounced spherulitic refinement in nanocomposites (61% reduction in diameter), compared to a more modest refinement in microcomposites (25% reduction). XRD analysis showed that nanocomposites preserved lamellar thickness, whereas microcomposites exhibited progressive thinning with increasing filler loading. These structural differences produced distinct mechanical responses, with non-monotonic tensile behavior in nanocomposites and near-monotonic strength reduction in microcomposites. A unified model is proposed in which tensile strength scales with the product of crystallinity and a morphology factor derived from spherulite size and lamellar thickness. The model captures the observed size-dependent strengthening behavior, demonstrating the critical role of morphology in nanocomposite strengthening.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":183,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Polymer Science","volume":"143 46","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2026-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149311549","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}