Preparation of cellulose whiskers reinforced nanocomposites from an organic medium suspension

The purpose of this study was to investigate a new way of processing cellulose whiskers reinforced polymer. A stable suspension of tunicin whiskers was obtained in an organic solvent (N,N-dimethylformamide) without a surfactant addition or a chemical surface modification. Both the high value of the dielectric constant of DMF and the medium wettability of tunicin whiskers were supposed to control the stability of the suspension. The nanocomposite materials were prepared by UV cross-linking using an unsaturated polyether as matrix. The resulting films were characterized by SEM, DSC, and mechanical testing in both the linear and nonlinear domains. The processing technique from a N,N-dimethylformamide suspension was found to be successful and led to materials whose properties are similar to those obtained with aqueous medium. It could be a good alternative to broaden the number of possible polymer matrices and to allow the processing of nanocomposite materials from an organic solvent solution instead of using aqueous suspensions.