TY - JOUR A1 - Bismarck, A. A1 - Pfaffernoschke, M. A1 - Springer, J. A1 - Schulz, Eckhard T1 - Polystyrene-grafted Carbon Fibers: Surface Properties and Adhesion to Polystyrene JF - Journal of thermoplastic composite materials N2 - It is highly desirable to improve attractive interactions between carbon fibers and unreactive thermoplastic matrices to the possible maximum. This could be achieved by a simple grafting process to create a covalently bonded interface or interlayer, which should result in cohesive interactions between the polymer-grafted fibers and the same matrix material, leading to a better adhesion strength in the obtained composite material. Here, we are describing the grafting of styrene onto unmodified and unsized carbon fibers via free-radical bulk polymerization in the presence of fibers. After grafting, the surface properties of the carbon fiber approach those of pure polystyrene which was proven by contact angle and zeta ({zeta}) potential measurements. As indicated by the water contact angle, the carbon fiber surface becomes more hydrophobic. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) provides evidence of grafted polymer. This simple procedure results in a continuous polystyrene coating. The fiber diameter increases significantly after polymer grafting. The adhesion and fracture behavior between the original and polystyrene-grafted carbon fibers to a polystyrene (VESTYRON®) matrix was characterized using the single-fiber pull-out test. There is a considerable increase in the measurable adhesion, i.e., the interfacial shear strength IFSS, by almost 300% between the grafted fibers and polystyrene as compared to untreated original fibers. Two planes of interfacial failure could be distinguished; first in the fiber coating interface leading to lower interfacial shear strength and second in the PS-matrix-PS-coating interphase resulting in a higher interfacial shear strength. In addition to the improved adhesion, there are also clear differences in the pull-out behavior between the nongrafted and grafted fibers. After the initial debonding process corresponding to the maximal pull-out force is completed, the pull-out force is increasing again. PY - 2005 DO - https://doi.org/10.1177/0892705705049559 SN - 0892-7057 SN - 1530-7980 VL - 18 IS - 4 SP - 307 EP - 331 PB - Sage Publ. CY - London AN - OPUS4-11599 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bruzzano, S. A1 - Sieverling, N. A1 - Wieland, Ch. A1 - Jaeger, W. A1 - Thünemann, Andreas A1 - Springer, J. T1 - Cationic polymer grafted starch from nonsymmetrically substituted macroinitiators JF - Macromolecules N2 - The aim of this work was the synthesis of starch macroinitiators for cationic polymer grafted starches that: (i) are free of cationic homopolymer, and (ii) display a high degree of conversion of the cationic monomer. We show that this can be achieved by a free-radical polymerization reaction using the cationic monomer N-methacryloyloxyethyl-N,N-dimethyl-N-benzylammonium chloride (MADAM-BQ) and a new starch-based macroazoinitiator. For this purpose, the acid chloride of 4-tert-butylazo-4-cyanovaleric acid was synthesized and bound covalently to starch (predominantly in the C6 position) to form a nonsymmetrically substituted macroinitiator that was used to polymerize MADAM-BQ in aqueous media. Essentially no MADAM-BQ homopolymer was formed. The initiator decomposes thermally to starch radicals of high reactivity and low-molar mass radicals that do not initiate polymerization. The reason for the different reactivities of the radicals is presumably due to the nonsymmetric constitution of the starch-bound azo groups. The graft polymerization of MADAM-BQ in aqueous solution performs according to an ideal overall kinetic. The structure of the synthesized starch-graft-poly(MADAM-BQ) products is similar to that of block copolymers because of the low radical efficiency of the starch initiators in aqueous solution. Especially, starch substrates with a higher content of azo groups did not lead to graft products with shorter graft distances because the state of solution of these macroinitiators becomes worse and aggregation occurs with an increasing degree of substitution. KW - Starch KW - Azo macroinitiators PY - 2005 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/ma048063f SN - 0024-9297 SN - 1520-5835 VL - 38 SP - 7251 EP - 7261 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington, DC AN - OPUS4-10536 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -