Improving barrier properties of polyethylene/Fe2O3‐modified nanographene nanocomposites in a magnetic field

Abstract

AbstractThe present work aims at improving the barrier properties of high molecular weight Polyethylene/ graphene nanoplatelets (HMWPE/GnP) nanocomposites by aligning the embedded modified graphene nanoparticles in a magnetic field. Graphene nanoplatelets (GnP) were modified by magnetic Fe2O3 to produce Fe2O3‐modified Graphene, GnP‐mFe2O3. The magnetic properties of Fe2O3 were previously characterized by the vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) method and resulting GnP‐mFe2O3 nanoparticles were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis. HMWPE/GnP nanocomposites were prepared via melt mixing. The prepared nanocomposites were sheeted at high temperatures in a magnetic field using a hot press. The barrier properties of prepared films, HMWPE/GnP and HMWPE/GnP‐mFe2O3 were characterized by carrying out a permeation to oxygen experiment as a function of GnP and GnP‐mFe2O3 contents. A decrease in gas transmission rate (GTR) was observed for the samples after being subjected to the magnetic field compared to the non‐treated sample. The results of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and field emission electron microscopy (FESEM) experiments confirmed the orientation of GnP‐mFe2O3 nanoparticles in nanocomposites.