Compatibility and Properties of Biodegradable Blend Films with Gelatin and Poly(vinyl alcohol)

The blend films with gelatin and poly（vinyl alcohol） （PVA） were prepared by a solution casting method. The compatibility between gelatin and PVA in the blend films was investigated. The transmittance, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy （FTIR）, x-ray diffraction （XRD）, thermogravimetry analysis （TG）, and differential scanning calorimetry （DSC） were employed to characterize the resultant blend films. According to optic result, the opacity of the blend film at the ratio of 20/80 （w/w, Gel to PVA） was the lowest, indicating the best compatibility between Gel and PVA at the ratio. The results oflR, XRD, DSC, and TG revealed an intensive interaction and good compatibility between them in the blend film at the ratio. The mechanical properties and solubility showed that PVA content in the blend films obviously affected the elongation at break and solubility. The mechanical properties and water resistance of gelatin film may be improved by the introduetion of PVA.

Influence of Poly（methyl metacrylate） Addition on Resistive Switching Performance of P3HT/P（VDF-TrFE） Blend Films

Organic semiconducting/ferroelectric blend films attracted much attention due to their electrical bistability and rectification properties and thereof the potential in resistive memory devices. Blend films were usually deposited from solution, during which phase separation oc- curred, resulting in discrete semiconducting phase whose electrical property was modulated by surrounding ferroelectric phase. However, phase separation resulted in rough surface and thus large leakage current. To further improve electrical properties of such blend films, poly（methyl metacrylate） （PMMA） was introduced as additive into P3HT/P（VDF-TrFE） semiconducting/ferroelectric blend films in this work. It indicated that small amount of PMMA addition could effectively enhance the electrical stability to both large electrical stress and electrical fatigue and further improve retention performance. Overmuch PMMA addition tended to result in the loss of resistive switching property. A model on the configuration of three components was also put forward to well understand our experimental observations.

Preparation and Characterization of Chitosan/Carboxymethylated Konjac Glucomannan Blend Films

In order to improve the mechanical and water swelling properties of the chitosan (CS) film, a series of transparent films were prepared by blending 2%(weight) chitosan acetic acid solution with 1.5%(weight) carboxymethylated konjac glucomannan (CMKGM) aqueous solution according to predetermined ratio and drying at 30°C. The morphological structure, miscibility, thermal stability, mechanical properies, and swelling capacity of the blend films were studied by infrared (IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential thermal analysis (DTA), scanning electron micrograph (SEM), and measurements of the mechanical properties and swelling properties. The results demonstrated that there was strong interaction and good miscibility between CS and CMKGM resulted from intermolecular hydrogen bonding and electrostatic force. The mechanical properties in dry state and wet state, thermostability, and water swelling properties of the blend films were obviously improved. The best values of the tensile strength in the dry and wet state achieved 89 MPa and 49 MPa, respectively, when the CMKGM content was 30%(weight). The CS/ CMKGM blend films provided promising biomedical applications.

Simulation of Morphologies and Mechanical Properties of A/B Polymer Blend Film

The effects of blend composition and micro-phase structure on the mechanical behavior of A/B polymer blend film are studied by coupling the Monte Carlo(MC) simulation of morphology with the lattice spring model(LSM) of micro mechanics of materials.The MC method with bond length fluctuation and cavity diffusion algorithm on cubic lattice is adopted to simulate the micro-phase structure of A/B polymer blend.The information of morphology and structure is then inputted to the LSM composed of a three-dimensional network of springs to obtain the mechanical properties of polymer blend film.Simulated results show that the mechanical response is mainly affected by the density and the composition of polymer blend film through the morphology transition.When a force is applied on the outer boundary of polymer blend film,the vicinity of the inner cavities experiences higher stresses and strains responsible for the onset of crack propagation and the premature failure of the entire system.

PROPERTIES OF SILK FIBROIN/POLY(ETHYLENE GLYCOL)400 BLEND FILMS

The blend film of silk fibroin (SF) and poly(ethylene glycol)400 (PEG400) with a blend ratio of 2/1 (wt/wt) wasprepared simply by dropping a little PEG400 into the SF solution and then casting the mixed aqueous solution at 50℃. Theresulting film exhibited much better mechanical properties in the dry and wet state than SF itself, owing to theconformational change of SF in the blends from the random coil to the β-sheet structure and intermolecular hydrogen bondformation between SF and PEG400. Thermogravimetric analysis showed that the initial thermal decomposition temperatureof the blend film was 170℃, which was 80℃ lower than that of SF (250℃) and 20℃ higher than that of PEG400 (150℃),and indicated a Strong interaction between two components of the blend. No crystalline peaks were observed in the X-raydiffraction curve of the blend film. Cell culture test showed that SF/PEG400 was a suitable substrate for the growth of humanumbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC).

A study of chitosan blend film as a carrier of corneal endothelial cells

In order to evaluate the cytocompatibility and biocompatibility of a new kind of chitosan blend film as a carrier of corneal endothelial cell, rabbit corneal endothelial cells cultured in vitro were breeded onto the film. After a cell monolayer formed, the scanning electron micrography was performed. After inplanted into anterior chamber, slit lamp observation, thickness metering, specular microscopy and HE staining were performed at random time after operation to evaluate the biocompatibility. Inflmmnation in anterior, thickness of cornea, cell density, hexagonality and cell size of the surgical cornea were taken as the indexes of biocompatibility. The cultured cells exhibited a confluent monolayer 10 days after incubation, which proved the satisfactory cytocompatibility of this film. Biocompatibility assay results suggested the implantation feasibility of the film as a carder of corneal endothelial cells.

MONTE CARLO SIMULATION OF TRIBLOCK COPOLYMER/HOMOPOLYMER BLEND FILMS

The morphologies of triblock copolymer/homopolymer blend films, ABA/A and ABAIB, confined between two neutral hard walls were studied via Monte Carlo （MC） simulation on a simple .cubic lattice. The effects of φh （the volume fraction of homopolymer） and Md/Mb （the molecular weight of homopolymer in relation to that of the corresponding blocks in the copolymer） on the morphologies were investigated in detail.

Influence of Phase Behavior and Miscibility on Mechanical, Thermal and Micro-Structure of Soluble Starch-Gelatin Thermoplastic Biodegradable Blend Films

Polymer blends of cold water soluble starches (amylose or amylopectin soluble starch) with gelatin were prepared using solvent casting method. The solid state miscibility and polymer-polymer interactions between the constituent polymers were studied by fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorirmetry (DSC), light optical microscopy (OP) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), whereas the thermal stability of the blends was studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Furthermore, tensile and water vapor barrier properties of the blends were assessed. The obtained results exhibited that gelatin was more miscible with amylose soluble starch than with amylopectin soluble starch. Moreover, enhancing mechanical and water barrier properties of amylose soluble starch/gelatin blends were more pronounced than those of amylopectin soluble starch/gelatin blends. Generally, tensile strength (TS) and Elongation percentage (E) of the blend films were found to be gradually increased with increasing the proportion of gelatin. Nevertheless, increasing starch proportion was in favor of decreasing water vapor permeability (WVP). At equal proportions of starch and gelatin (1:1), TS was raised up to 8.69 MPa for amylose soluble starch/gelatin blend films while it raised up to 4.96 MPa for amylopectin soluble starch/gelatin blend films, and so on E was increased to its maximum by ~179.6% for soluble amylose starch/gelatin blends while it was increased to ~114.5% for amylopectin soluble starch/gelatin blends. On the other hand, WVP was significantly decreased to be 6.46 and 12.09 g·mm/m2·day·kPa for blends of amylose and amylopectin soluble?starches, respectively.

Reactive processing of poly(lactic acid)/poly(ethylene octene) blend film with tailored interfacial intermolecular entanglement and toughening mechanism

In order to obtain a uniform and effectively toughened poly(lactic acid)film by blending with low content of poly(ethylene octene)(POE)with high elasticity,the tailored interfacial intermolecular interaction and entanglement between the two phases of the PLA/POE blend was innovatively constructed via the facile reactive melt blending process through the reaction of the epoxy/anhydride groups grafted on the POE chains with the end groups of PLA chains(PLA/GPOE-MPOE).It was observed that POE domains were embedded tightly in PLA matrix with a fuzzy interface and abundant interface transition area,and the impact fractured surface of the blend showed an obvious plastic deformation with less occurrence of fibrillation of PLA matrix or interfacial de-bonding.Compared with neat PLA and directly blended PLA/POE blends,the PLA/GPOE-MPOE blend exhibited much higher complex viscosity/storage modulus,much lower tanδvalues in the terminal region,and obvious strain-hardening behavior.The deviation in viscoelastic behavior of PLA/GPOE-MPOE from linear PLA indicated the enhanced molecular entanglement between the long-branched chains,resulting in an enhancement of the stretching ability during biaxial drawing of the blend.Uniform PLA/GPOE-MPOE films with draw ratio as high as 7×7 were obtained through biaxial stretching,which showed much higher tensile strength and the elongation at break than that of neat PLA and PLA/POE film.This work provides a facile method for fabricating toughening PLA films with application potentials.

Mechanical behavior and wrinkling patterns of phaseseparated binary polymer blend film

The wrinkling of phase-separated binary polymer blend film was studied through combining the Monte Carlo(MC)simulation for morphologies with the lattice spring model(LSM)for mechanical properties.The information of morphology and structure obtained by use of MC simulation is input to the LSM composed of a three-dimensional network of springs,which allows us to determine the wrinkling and the mechanical properties of polymer blend film,such as strain,stress,and Young’s modulus.The simulated results show that the wrinkling of phase-separated binary polymer blend film is related not only to the structure of morphology,but also to the disparity in elastic moduli between polymers of blend.Our simulation results provide fundamental insight into the relationship between morphology,wrinkling,and mechanical properties for phase-separated polymer blend films and can yield guidelines for formulating blends with the desired mechanical behavior.The wrinkling results also reveal that the stretching of the phase-separated film can form the micro-template,which has a wide application prospect.

Synergistic Effect of Nucleation and Compatibilization on the Polylactide and Poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) Blend Films

Polylactide （PLA） films blended with 10 wt% poly（butylene adipate-co-terephthalate） （PBAT） were prepared by using a twin screw extruder in the presence of the nucleating agent of titanium dioxide （TiO2） and the compatibilizers of toluene diisocyanate （TDI） and PLA-grafted-maleic anhydride （PLA-g-MA）. The synergistic effect of the nucleation and compatibilization on the properties and crystallization behavior of the PLA/PBAT （PLB） films was explored. The results showed that the addition of TiO2 significantly enhanced the tensile strength and the impact tensile resistance of the PLB films while slightly decreased its thermal stability. In addition, the compatibilizers of TDI and PLA-g-MA in the system not only affected the crystallinity and cold crystallization process of the PLB films, but also increased the mechanical properties of them due to the improvement of the interracial interaction between PLA and PBAT revealed by the morphological measurement. The synergistic effects of the nucleating agent and the compatibilizer afforded the blend films with increased tensile strength and impact tensile toughness, improved cold crystallization property and Xc.

MISCIBILITY AND MORPHOLOGY OF THIN FILMS OF BLENDS OF POLYSTYRENE WITH BROMINATED POLYSTYRENES: EFFECTS OF VARYING THE MOLECULAR WEIGHT, BROMINATION DEGREE AND ANNEALING

Thin films of incompatible polymer blends can form a variety of structures during preparation and subsequent annealing process. For the polymer blend system consisting of polystyrene and poly（styrene-co-p-bromo-styrene）, i.e., PS/PBrxS, its compatibility could be adjusted by varying the degree of bromination and the molecular weight of both components comprised. In this paper, surface chemical compositions of the cast and the annealing films were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） and contact angle measurement; meanwhile, surface topographical changes are followed by atomic force microscopy （AFM）. In addition, substantial attention was paid to the effect of annealing on the morphologic variations induced by phase separation and/or dewetting of the thin film. Moreover, the influences of the molecular weight, Mw, as well as the brominated degree, x%, on the sample surface are explored systematically, and the corresponding observations are explained in virtue of the Flory-Huggins theory, along with the dewetting of the polymer thin film.

Preparation and Characterization of Subsurface Silver Particulate Films on Polymer Blends of Polystyrene/Poly(2-vinylpyridine)/Poly(vinylpyrollidone)/Poly(4-vinylpyridine)

Silver particulate thin films on softened polymer blends of Polystyrene (PS)/Poly(2-vinyl pyridine) (P2VP), PS/Poly(4-vinylpyridine) (P4VP), and Poly(vinylpyrollidone) (PVP)/P4VP at a rate of 0.4 nm/s held at a temperature of 457 K in vacuum of 8 × 10-6 Torr by evaporation are deposited. These silver films were characterized by their electrical behavior, optical properties and Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Silver films deposited on softened PS, and PVP give rise to a very high room temperature resistance approaching that of the substrate resistance due to the formation of a highly agglomerated structure. On the other hand, silver films on softened P2VP and P4VP give rise to a room temperature resistance in the range of tens to a few hundred MΩ/ which is desirable for device applications. Silver films on the composites of PS/P2VP, PS/P4VP and PVP/P4VP show resistances at room temperature. The optical and plasmonic response of Ag nanoparticles onto thin layers of blends shows encapsulation of nanoparticles. The electrical properties and SEM of silver nanoparticles on the thin layers of polymer blends indicate the formation of much smaller, narrower dispersion and wide size distribution.

Investigation on Mechanical Properties of CMSLDS/Acrylate Copolymeric Blending Films for Warp Sizing

Carboxymethyl starch with lower degree of substitution was, blended with acrylate copolymer for revealing the relation between mechanical properties and chemical structure of blending film. Effects of carboxymethylation of starch, acrylate constituent units of acrylate copolymers, and copolymer content of the film on the properties were investigated. The mechanical properties were evaluated in terms of tensile strength, breaking elongation, abrasion resistance, and flex-fatigue resistance. Film morphology was examined with X-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, and atomic force microscope （AFM）. It was found that the properties depended on the degree of substitution of carboxymethyl starch, chemical structure of acrylate units, and content of acrylate copolymer. Phase-separation of the two ingredients occurred within film matrix and the separation was decreased after starch carboxymethylation. Breaking elongation and flex-fatigue resistance of the film reached maximmns when acrylate copolymer content was 50%. Excessively increasing the content of acrylate copolymer reduced the film properties.

An Investigation on Properties of PU/PVC Blended Porous Films

Structure and properties of PU/PVC blended film are fnvestlgated in the work. The experimental results show that the PU/PVC blended film has a multiplex poroslty strueture, and their structure and properties vary with PVC content in the blended film. The correlation and regresslon between the properties and PVC content are listed in the paper.

Preparation and Investigation on Novel Biodegradable Films Based on Konajac Glucomannan and Palmitoylated Konjac Glucomannan

Konjac glucomannan(KGM) has been generally used in food,film-former and biomedical applications,especially in the edible packing films due to its excellent film-forming ability,good biocompatibility and biodegrade-ability.It has the common flaws of natural polymers,such as low mechanical properties and poor antimicrobial activity,which severely limit their applications.In this paper,novel biodegradable films(NBF) of KGM with palmitoylated KGM(PKGM) were prepared by using the solventcasting technique.The structure,thermal and mechanical properties of the NBF were investigated.The results suggested that a strong hydrogen bonding was formed in NBF,which resulted in good miscibility between KGM and PKGM.The tensile strength and elongation at break of the NBF were enhanced significantly with the increase of PKGM in a certain range.With the addition of 0.75%PKGM by weight,tensile strength and elongation at break of NBF were improved largely to 117.12 MPa and 14.39%.From this work,we hope to provide one of the promising ways to design new edible food films and coatings materials with good mechanical properties.

EFFECTS OF BLENDING CHITOSAN WITH PEG ON SURFACE MORPHOLOGY,CRYSTALLIZATION AND THERMAL PROPERTIES

Biodegradable blend films composed of chitosan and PEG with various composition ratios were prepared.The chemical structure of the blend films was characterized with FTIR and X-ray,which showed no chemical bond formations but certain interactions probably coming from the hydrogen bonds.Morphologies of these blend films were viewed using AFM and SEM,suggesting that pure chitosan film had a smooth surface structure and the blend films surface showed a plenty of holes with varying size.Through the DMA measurem...

Novel Membranes Regenerated from Blends of Cellulose/Gluten Using Ethylenediamine/Potassium Thiocyanate Solvent System

Current industrial methods for dissolution of cellulose in making regenerated cellulose products are relatively expensive,toxic and dangerous and have environmental problems coming with the hazard chemical wastes.To solve these problems,a novel ethylenediamine and potassium thiocyanate(ED/KSCN)solvent system was developed,that is economical,ecofriendly,and highly efficient.The ED/KSCN solvent system was proven to be a suitable solvent for fabricating cellulose(blended with other polymers)membranes.In this study,gluten was used to develop nonporous membranes with cellulose.The method of casting these membranes provided better ones than the former researchers’techniques.These composite membranes’physical and mechanical properties were studied by analysis of morphology,viscosity,crystallinity,thermal behaviors,tensile properties and water absorption of membranes.Results showed that membranes are nonporous,uniform,strong,flexible,ecofriendly and renewable.Mechanical and physical properties were influenced by the ratio of cellulose/gluten.By blending 40% gluten,the tensile strength of cellulose membrane dropped to 15.89 MPa from 35.11 MPa.However,its elongation at break increased from 35.3% to 57.02% accordingly.

Mixed P3HT/PCBM Organic Thin-Film Transistors： Relation between Morphology and Electrical Characteristics

The mixed P3HT （poly（3-hexylthiophene）） and [6,6]-PCBM （phenyl C61-butyric acid methyl ester） organic thin films were investigated for electronic structure using UV-Vis spectrophotometer and PESA （photo-electron spectroscopy in air）. Furthermore, ESR （electron spin resonance） and AFM （atomic force microscopy） were used to investigate the surface morphology and molecular orientation, respectively. ESR analysis indicated the molecular orientation of the P3HT crystalline in the blend thin films, which the crystalline oriented normal to the substrate with distribution of 35°. AFM images indicated that the surface morphology of P3HT film was affected by the presence of PCBM nanoparticles. Solution-processed OTFTs （organic thin-film transistors） based on P3HT/PCBM blend thin film in a top source-drain contact structure was fabricated, and the electrical characteristics of the devices were also investigated. A unipolar property with p-channel characteristics were obtained in glove box measurement.

Growth parameter dependence of magnetic property of CrAs thin film

This paper has systematically investigated the substrate temperature and thickness dependence of surface morphology and magnetic property of CrAs compound films grown on GaAs by molecular-beam epitaxy. It finds that the substrate temperature affects the surface morphology and magnetic property of CrAs thin film more potently than the thickness.