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Tough citric acid-modified cellulose-containing polymer composites with three components consisting of movable cross-links and hydrogen bonds

Polymer Journal volume 55, pages 1151–1164 (2023)Cite this article

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Abstract

Cellulose-containing polymer composites have advantages in addressing environmental issues because cellulose is a biobased filler that enhances the mechanical properties of the polymer composites. The enhanced mechanical properties reduce the amount of polymer waste generated. Although it is important to establish strategies for enhancing the mechanical properties of polymer composites, there are limited nanoscale studies on the polymer matrices. Usually, polymer composites focus on interactions between the matrices and fillers on the molecular scale and the distribution degrees of the fillers. The lack of structural studies is particularly obvious for polymer composites containing citric acid-modified cellulose. Herein, we study the structures of polymer composites with X-ray scattering measurements, thermal property measurements, and the finite element method. We reveal that an appropriate phase separation structure enables the formation of effective hydrogen bonds with high toughness values. We expect this report to provide material designs for polymer composites.

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Acknowledgements

This research was funded by Scientific Research on Innovative Area JP19H05721 from MEXT of Japan, JST, the Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology (CREST) program JPMJCR22L4 and COI-NEXT program JPMJPF2218, and Iketani Science and Technology Foundation (0341026-A). The authors would like to thank Dr. Kenichi Osaka (SPring-8, JASRI) for the synchrotron radiation scattering measurements. The synchrotron radiation experiments were performed at BL19B2 of SPring-8 with the approval of the Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI) (Proposal No. 2022A1797). We thank Dr. Naoya Inazumi and the Analytical Instrumental Facility, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, for supporting the NMR and FT-IR measurements.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Macromolecular Science, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1 Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka, 560-0043, Japan

    Junsu Park, Yuki Asaki, Takuma Wada, Ryohei Ikura & Yoshinori Takashima

  2. Forefront Research Center, Osaka University, 1-1 Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka, 560-0043, Japan

    Junsu Park, Ryohei Ikura & Yoshinori Takashima

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Osaka Institute of Technology, 5-16-1 Omiya, Asahi, Osaka, 535-8585, Japan

    Yuki Fujiwara & Yasutomo Uetsuji

  4. Division of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1, Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan

    Akihide Sugawara & Hiroshi Uyama

  5. Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan

    Takashi Konishi

  6. Graduate School of Organic Materials Engineering, Yamagata University, 4-3-16 Jonan, Yonezawa, Yamagata, 992-8510, Japan

    Go Matsuba

  7. Institute for Advanced Co-Creation Studies, Osaka University, 1-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan

    Yoshinori Takashima

  8. Institute for Open and Transdisciplinary Research Initiatives, Osaka University, 1-1 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan

    Yoshinori Takashima

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  1. Junsu Park
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Correspondence to Junsu Park, Hiroshi Uyama or Yoshinori Takashima.

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Park, J., Asaki, Y., Fujiwara, Y. et al. Tough citric acid-modified cellulose-containing polymer composites with three components consisting of movable cross-links and hydrogen bonds. Polym J 55, 1151–1164 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41428-023-00823-3

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