Now showing 1 - 10 of 11
  • Publication
    Mechanical properties of rCB-pigment masterbatch in rLDPE: the effect of processing aids and water absorption test
    (De Gruyter Brill, 2023)
    Muhamad Al-Haqqem Abdul Hadi
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    ;
    Chew Kang Wei
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    ; ;
    Wong Wee Chun
    Homogenization of pigment is the key to coloring a plastic product evenly. In this article, the tensile properties of recovered carbon black merge with low molecular weight lubricants and other compounding ingredients in the form of pigment masterbatch (PM) added in a recycled low-density polyethylene (rLDPE) resin were evaluated. The prepared masterbatch with the varying amount and types of processing aids (A and B) was first compounded using the heated two-roll mill. Subsequently, the manually mixed masterbatch in rLDPE was put through an injection molding machine for the shaping process to produce an rLDPE pigment masterbatch composite (PMC). The tensile test was performed on the samples to evaluate the mechanical properties of the PMC. Meanwhile, the melt flow index test was executed to justify the composite flow characteristics. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analysis and scanning electron microscopy were also carried out to analyze the PM and PMC chemical properties and their constructed surface morphology. Besides, X-ray diffraction analysis was performed to determine the changes in degree of crystallinity before and after the water absorption test. The addition of PM in rLDPE has slightly increased the rLDPE matrix tensile properties. While, the usage of more processing aid B in the PMC has turned out to secure better tensile properties compared to the addition of higher amount of processing aid A in the PMC. Interestingly, the tensile properties of all composites after the water absorption test were enhanced, suggesting that a stronger bond was formed during the immersion period.
  • Publication
    Microwave welding with SiCNW/PMMA nanocomposite thin films: enhanced joint strength and performance
    (Institute of Physic, 2025-01)
    Phey Yee Foong
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    ; ;
    Foo Wah Low
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    ; ; ;
    Veeradasan Perumal
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    ;
    Most previously reported susceptors for microwave welding are in powder form. In this study, a thin-film susceptor was employed due to its uniform heating rate and ease of handling. Silicon carbide nanowhisker (SiCNW) were incorporated into a poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) matrix to create a nanocomposite thin film, which served as the susceptor. The microwave welding process involved three straightforward steps: fabrication of the PMMA/SiCNW nanocomposite thin film, application of the nanocomposite film to the target area, and subsequent microwave heating. Upon cooling, a robust microwave-welded joint was formed. The mechanical properties and microstructure of the welded joints were characterized using single-lap shear tests, three-point bending tests, and scanning electron microscopy. Results demonstrated that the shear strength and elastic modulus of the welded joints were optimized with increased heating time and SiCNW filler loading. This optimization is attributed to the formation of a SiCNW-filled polypropylene (PP) nanocomposite layer of increasing thickness at the welded joint interface. However, the incorporation of SiCNW also constrained the mobility of the PP chains, reducing the joint’s flexibility. Furthermore, the welded joint formed with the PMMA/SiCNW nanocomposite thin-film susceptor exhibited an 18.82% improvement in shear strength compared to joints formed with a powdered SiCNW susceptor. This study not only demonstrates the potential of PMMA/SiCNW nanocomposite thin films as efficient susceptors for microwave welding but also paves the way for developing high-performance polymer-based composite joints with improved mechanical properties for applications in the automotive, aerospace, and construction industries.
  • Publication
    The effect of coated calcium carbonate using stearic acid on the recovered carbon black masterbatch in low-density polyethylene composites
    ( 2023-01-01)
    Leow V.J.
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    Yeoh C.K.
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    Wong W.C.
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    ;
    Mohamed Rasidi M.S.
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    This research focuses on recycling rubber tire waste through pyrolysis to produce recovered carbon black (rCB). The rCB is combined with recycled low-density polyethylene (rLDPE), calcium carbonate (CaCO3), fatty acid, metallic stearate, and polyethylene (PE) wax to create an rCB masterbatch for household packaging. Surface modification of CaCO3 particles using stearic acid improves the compatibility with LDPE. The study investigates mechanical properties, morphology, melt flow index (MFI), X-ray diffraction, and thermogravimetric analysis in three systems: uncoated, coated, and a hybrid combination of coated and uncoated CaCO3 in LDPE/rCB masterbatch composites. The coated system demonstrates higher mechanical properties and improved compatibility between CaCO3 and LDPE. All three systems exhibit enhanced thermal stability and MFI compared to virgin LDPE, with the coated system showing the most significant improvement. The study showcases the potential of LDPE/rCB masterbatch composites for household packaging, with the coated system displaying the optimum performance across various characteristics.
      1  36
  • Publication
    Effect of infill density with ZnO concentration on the mechanical properties of 3D printed PLA/ZnO composites
    (American Institute of Physics Inc., 2022-05-18)
    Tan M.A.
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    ; ; ;
    Song C.C.
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    Mansor N.S.S.
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    Lim J.H.
    Polylactic acid (PLA) plastics are biodegradable materials manufactured from PLA resin by melt spinning and solvent spinning methods. PLA is widely applied in textile fabric, non-woven, masks and sanitary napkins applications due to excellent safety, environmental protection and good mechanical properties. The process of 3D printing is continuous and able to produce complex three-dimensional structures. PLA/ZnO composite samples were fabricated by a 3D printer. ZnO acts as filler in PLA/ZnO composites to obtain the excellent properties like specific tensile properties and density. However, ZnO agglomeration occurred at higher concentration when viewed via SEM. Printing parameters such as infill density, raster orientation and infill pattern can influence the mechanical properties of 3D samples as well. The objective of this paper is to determine the effect of infill density with different ZnO concentration on the mechanical properties of 3D printed PLA/ZnO composites. Tensile and density measurement were carried out to determine the mechanical properties of composites. The influence of 80%, 90%, 100% infill rate and ZnO concentration varied by 1 and 5 mol. As a result, higher infill rate (100%) and optimum filler concentration (1 mol ZnO) give the excellent properties thus can be used for future applications.
      2  4
  • Publication
    Effect of silicone rubber on the properties of epoxy/recovered carbon black (rCB) conductive materials
    ( 2024-04)
    Pei Chee Leow
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    ; ;
    Wee Chun Wong
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    Chong Hooi Yew
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    Xue Yi Lim
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    Kai Kheng Yeoh
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    ;
    The primary focus of this study is to investigate the effect of silicone rubber (SR) content on the mechanical, thermal, electrical conductivity, and morphological properties of epoxy/recovered carbon black (rCB) conductive material. The conductive material is used to produce the electrostatic discharge (ESD) tray for the electronic packaging industry. This study investigated the effect of silicone rubber content (0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 vol.%) on the properties of epoxy/SR/rCB conductive materials, with the rCB content fixed at 15 vol.% for its optimum electrical conductivity. The silicone rubber acts as a toughening agent for epoxy. Through the fracture toughness result, it can be identified that silicone rubber plays a role in improving the toughness properties of the epoxy/SR/rCB conductive material. The optimum results for mechanical properties were recorded at 5 vol.% SR. The addition of SR to the epoxy matrix enhances the electrical properties of the epoxy/SR/rCB conductive material. The effect of thermal aging on epoxy/SR/rCB conductive materials was also studied to determine the properties of the conductive material materials at high temperatures for a long period of time. After thermal aging, the mechanical, thermal, electrical conductivity, and morphological properties of the epoxy/SR/rCB conductive material were slightly reduced.
      1  63
  • Publication
    The influence of liquid silicone rubber on the properties of polyurethane elastomer/liquid silicone rubber/graphene nanoplatelets stretchable conductive materials
    ( 2022-11-01)
    Heng C.W.
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    ; ;
    Yeoh C.K.
    This work reports the influence of liquid silicone rubber (LSR) as a secondary matrix in the polyurethane elastomer (PUE)/LSR/graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs) stretchable conductive materials. PUE was prepared by mixing with diphenylmethane-4,4-diisocyanate (MDI) and 1,4 butanediol (BDO). The content of LSR varied from 0 to 50 vol.% at fixed 1.0 vol.% of graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs) as a conductive filler. Liquid silicone rubber was used as the secondary immiscible phase to localize GnPs into a path in the primary phase in order to obtain higher electrical conductivity value. The tensile strength of the PUE/LSR/GnPs decreased with increasing LSR content, while the tear strength shows the optimum value at 10 vol.% of LSR. The incorporation of 20 vol.% of silicone rubber has proven to enhance the thermal stability of the blends.
      4  15
  • Publication
    Comparison study between recovered carbon black and commercial carbon black filled epoxy conductive materials
    ( 2024-01-01)
    Ooi H.M.
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    ; ;
    Wong W.C.
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    Yew C.H.
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    Lim X.Y.
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    Yeoh K.K.
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    ;
    Waste tire management and recycling have grown to be significant issues because they bring up a global environmental concern. Thus, turning recycled waste tires into useful products may help tackle the environmental issue. This research aims to study and compare the effect of recycled carbon black (rCB) and commercial carbon black (CB) at certain 15 vol. % of filler loading on the mechanical, thermal, morphology and electrical properties of epoxy/CB composites. For this project, epoxy resin, diethyltoluenediamine (DETDA), recovered carbon black (rCB) and commercial carbon black (CB) graded N330, N550, N660 and N774 were mixed and compared accordingly to the formulation determined. The CB content was dispersed in the epoxy matrix using the mechanical mixing technique. The distribution and dispersion of CB in the epoxy matrix affect the characteristics of the conductive composites. rCB content at 15 vol% was selected at fixed content for comparison purposes due to the optimum value in electrical conductivity results. The flexural strength results followed the sequence of rCB>N774>N660>N550>N330. As for electrical conductivity results, epoxy/N330 exhibited the highest conductivity value, while the others achieved a magnitude of X10-3 due to the highest external surface area of N330. In terms of thermal stability, epoxy/N330 and epoxy/N774 were slightly more stable than epoxy/rCB.
      1  46
  • Publication
    Dielectric and mechanical properties of PLA-carbon composites
    ( 2024-04)
    Mathanesh Thangarajan
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    ; ;
    Wee Chun Wong
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    Chong Hui Yew
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    Kang Zheng Khor
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    ;
    This study focuses on the development and characterization of Carbon-based Polylactide (PLA) composites for 3D printer filaments. The aim is to enhance the electrical and mechanical properties of PLA by incorporating recovered carbon black (RCB) in different mesh sizes (500, 1000, 1500, and 2000 mesh). Electrical impedance spectroscopy and dielectric constant measurements were performed to investigate the electrical properties of the composites. Results showed that the addition of RCB increased the dielectric constant, with values ranging from 2.5 to 7.1, indicating improved electrical performance. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis revealed the dispersion of carbon particles within the composites, enhancing their electrical conductivity. The effect of RCB particle size on electrical properties was also explored, with smaller particle sizes (2000 mesh) resulting in the highest conductivity of 6.2 S/m. Tensile testing demonstrated that the addition of RCB increases the tensile strength of PLA, with values ranging from 28.6 MPa to 47.2 MPa, and the elastic modulus, ranging from 832 MPa to 1.56 GPa, depending on the mesh size. The optimal combination of RCB content and mesh size resulted in a composite with a tensile strength of 43.8 MPa. Overall, this research provides insights into the development of Carbon-based PLA composites with improved electrical and mechanical properties.
      31  4
  • Publication
    The Effect of Solvents on the Preparation of Poly(9,9-Dioctylfluorene) Thin Films
    ( 2022-01-01)
    Chew K.W.
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    ; ;
    Abdul Hisam N.S.
    The optoelectronic properties of Poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene) (PFO) are highly influenced by the existence of a well-defined chain extended “β-phase” conformational isomer. This study aims to evaluate the produced PFO films optical properties. Pristine PFO films and aggregated PFO films were fabricated by the solvent casting method. PFO was first dissolved in chloroform and toluene separately. Meanwhile, for aggregated film, different percentage of methanol (poor solvent) was added to the PFO solution to induce β-phase formation. UV-vis measurement and scanning electron microscopy were used to characterize the films. The results reveal that PFO was fully soluble in chloroform while moderately soluble in toluene. This result was further confirmed by micrograph; the PFO film prepared from chloroform exhibited glassy conformation. While for the aggregation system, the absorption spectra of β-phase becoming more intense as methanol content increase.
      32  4
  • Publication
    Thermal Degradation of Photoluminescence Poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene) Solvent-Tuned Aggregate Films
    ( 2022-04-01)
    Chew K.W.
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    ; ;
    Abdul Hisam N.S.
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    Alias S.S.
    The progression of the green emission spectrum during the decomposition of polyfluorenes (PFs) has impeded the development and commercialization of the materials. Herein, we constructed a solvent-tuned aggregated PFO film with the aim of retarding the material’s thermal degradation behavior which causes a significant decline in optical properties as a result of phase transformation. The tuning of the aggregate amount and distribution was executed by applying a poor alcohol-based solvent in chloroform. It emerges that at a lower boiling point methanol evaporates quickly, limiting the aggregate propagation in the film which gives rise to a more transparent film. Furthermore, because of the modulated β-phase conformation, the absorption spectra of PFO films were red-shifted and broadened. The increase in methanol percentage also led to a rise in β-phase percentage. As for the thermal degradation reactions, both pristine and aggregated PFO films exhibited apparent changes in the UV-Vis spectra and PL spectra. In addition, a 97:3 (chloroform:methanol) aggregated PFO film showed a more defined emission spectrum, which demonstrates that the existence of β-phase is able to suppress the unwanted green emission.
      30  2