Different compositions of wheat thermoplastic starch (TPS) and polycaprolactone (PCL) are melt blended by extrusion and injected. Different properties are determined: mechanical properties (tensile and impact tests), thermal and thermomechanical properties (DSC and DMTA) and hydrophobicity (contact angle measurement). A large range of blends is analysed with different glycerol (plasticizer):sta...

Polymeric nanoparticles have received great attention as potential controlled drug delivery systems. Biodegradable polymers has been extensively used in the development of these drug carriers, and the polyesters such as polylactic acid, polyglycolic acid and their copolymers as poly-lactide-co-glycolide are the most used, considering its biocompatibility and biodegradability. Thermal analysis t...

Herein we report a novel method for the synthesis and processing of molecular recognition materials using supercritical fluid technology. Semi-covalently imprinted polymers with adsorption affinity to bisphenol A (BPA) were prepared for the first time in scCO2, at 65 oC and 21 MPa. BPA hydrolysis from the polymeric matrix was also performed in supercritical environment using a specific cleavage...

Background Due to the industrial significance, elongational viscosity of polymeric liquids has been widely investigated. In particular, strain hardening, which is the deviation of the elongational viscosity from the linear viscoelastic envelope, has been of industrial and scientific interest because polymeric liquids exhibiting strain hardening are suitable for processing technologies with elon...

In recent years, the development and use of polymeric nanocomposites in creating advanced materials has expanded exponentially. A substantial amount of research has been done in order to design polymeric nanocomposites in a safe and efficient manner. In the present study, the impact of processing parameters, such as, barrel temperature, and residence time on the mechanical and thermal propertie...

Synthetic polymeric materials are rapidly replacing more traditional inorganic materials, such as metals, and natural polymeric materials, such as wood. As these synthetic materials are flammable, they require modifications to decrease their flammability through the addition of flame-retardant compounds. Environmental regulation has restricted the use of some halogenated flame-retardant additiv...

New composite membranes based on porous anodic alumina films and polymer of intrinsic microporosity (PIM-1) have been prepared using a spin-coating technique. According to scanning electron microscopy, partial penetration of polymer into the pores of alumina supports takes place giving rise to selective polymeric layers with fiber-like microstructure. Geometric confinement of rigid PIM-1 in the...

A biofilm is complex aggregation of microorganisms growing on a solid substrate. These adherent cells are embedded within self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substance (EPS). Biofilms grow in the three stage process. Initially they get attached to the substratum, bacterial growth and division leads to colonization of the surrounding area and the formation of biofilms. Mature biofilm...

One of the most important goals of tissue engineering is the design and the generation of a biocompatible porous 3-D structure, with high porosity, high interconnectivity and homogenous morphology. Nevertheless, the implantation of engineered biomaterials might cause local inflammation because of the host’s immune response. To overcome this limitation, in this study, 3-D polymeric composite sca...

This article presents a new method for fabricating highly conductive gold nanostructures within a polymeric matrix with subwavelength resolution. The nanostructures are directly written in a gold precursor-doped photoresist using a femtosecond pulsed laser. The laser energy is absorbed by a two-photon dye, which induces simultaneous reduction of gold in the precursor and polymerization of the n...