title: Adhesion dynamics for cellulose nanocomposites.
abstract: The efficiency of poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) as a matrix polymer for cellulose nanocomposites has been investigated at the macromolecular contact level using atomic force microscopy in a colloidal probe configuration. Model cellulose microspheres grafted with PCL were prepared via ring-opening polymerization. Force measurements between the functionalized particles revealed the adhesion to be highly dependent on the contact time because of a diffusion-controlled mechanism. Moreover, an increase of the temperature to 60 degrees C (close to T(m) for the PCL graft) greatly enhanced the adhesion at the polymer-polymer interface, demonstrating the importance of entanglements in the annealing of composite materials.
authors.forename: Niklas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nordgren
authors.forename: Hanna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lönnberg
authors.forename: Anders
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hult
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Malmström
authors.forename: Mark W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Rutland
mesh_terms: D000327:Adsorption; D002482:Cellulose / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D053761:Nanocomposites / Q000737:chemistry*; D011091:Polyesters / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D011091:Polyesters; C016240:polycaprolactone; D002482:Cellulose