Comparison of Energy Consumption of Various Dryers in Plastic Pellets Drying

AbstractThe project goal was to study effect of rotary dryers on the energy consumption and specific energy consumption ofpolycarbonate (PC) pellets drying, the hopper dryer was compared. The PC pellets were dried with hopper dryer at 120 °C for 4 hrs in order to find the required moisture content then the PC pellets were dried at 80, 100 and 120 °C by both dryers until the required moisture content was achieved. The experiment showed that the required moisture content was 0.120% w.b., and rotary dryer could achieve faster the required moisture content of PC pellets than the hopper dryer leading to lower energy consumption and specific energy consumption of drying. Furthermore, color and shape of PC pellets were dried with both dryers of eachcondition were not transform to degrade

Effect of Additive on Crystallization and Mechanical Properties of Polymer Blends of Poly(Lactic Acid) and Poly[(Butylene Succinate)-co-Adipate]

AbstractThe effect of additive on crystallization and mechanical properties of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and poly(butylene succinate-co-adipate) (PBSA) blend was studied. PLA and PBSA were blended in a twin screw extruder, which incorporated poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) as an additive in PLA/PBSA blend. The ratio of PLA/PBSA was 80/20. The contents of PBAT were varied from 0 to 50 wt%. The thermal properties and crystallization behavior of PLA/PBSA/PBAT blends were analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry. The effect of PBAT contents on non-isothermal crystallization kinetic of the composites was investigated by using Avrami equation. Tensile strength and impact performance of the PLA/PBSA/PBAT blends decreased when increasing PBAT contents. It can be noted that the addition of 20 wt% PBAT showed the maximum impact performance of the PLA/PBSA blends

Effect of Compatibilizer on PLA/PP Blend for Injection Molding

AbstractPolymer blends of poly(lactic acid) and polypropylene were prepared for the application to injection molding products. Due to the phase separation of PLA and PP, the addition of polypropylene-graft-maleic anhydride (PP-g-MAH) as a compatibilizer was studied. The polymer blends were comprised of PLA:PP ratios 80:20 and 20:80 with addition of 1, 3 and 5 wt% of PP-g-MAH. The product samples were processed dry blend with injection molding process and the products were subjected to thermal, mechanical properties and morphology analysis. The thermal analysis confirmed that addition of PP-g-MAH has no effect on crystalline melting temperature of the polymer components as well as no effect on the mechanical properties. The morphology study of the polymer blends confirmed the adhesion of PLA and PP by assistance of PP-g-MAH. The addition of more amount of PP-g-MAH resulted in high polarity of a compatibilizer and decreased the compatibility with PLA. The tensile strength of polymer blends increased with increasing amounts of PLA. The research results confirmed the application of polymer blend system to injection molding process

Simple Hydrothermal Preparation of Zinc Oxide Powders Using Thai Autoclave Unit

AbstractZinc oxide powders with different morphology have been successfully prepared by adopting zinc nitrate hexahydrate (Zn(NO3)2.6H2O) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) as the starting precursors in the mole ratio of Zn(NO3)2.6H2O: NaOH of 1:2 and 1:10, via the simple hydrothermal process (60°C for 6h) using Thai autoclave unit. The shape, size, and crystalline structures of the as-prepared ZnO powders were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM) and x-ray diffraction (XRD). At the lower alkaline concentration, the prepared showed powder short prism-like shape with hexagonal phase. The average particle size was about 0.3-0.5 urn in width and 0.5-0.7 um in length. At the higher alkaline concentration, the microstructure of ZnO powders change in turn from short prism to flower-like shapes. The particle size was about 30-80nm in width and 0.5-1 urn in length. This preparation method provide a simple hydrothermal routes to fabricate ZnO powders using Thai autoclave Unit

Green Composites Based on PLA and Cotton Fabric Waste: Preparation and Characterization

Textile waste, from both consumption and production, has dramatically increased due to a lack of diversification in its use. Increasing the number of textile alternatives can help to solve these problems. Producing a green composite product is an interesting alternative method. The objectives of this work were to study the preparation and characterization of green composites created from PLA and cotton fabric waste (CFW) and to consider the effect of the CFW content on the composites. The procedure of the research began with CFW pellets preparation; this was subsequently compounded with PLA pellets using a melt-mixing technique with a twin-screw extruder at ratios of 90:10, 80:20, and 70:30 wt% between the PLA and cotton fabric waste, respectively. Then, the testing specimens were produced by compression molding. The experiments demonstrated that an increase in the CFW caused an increase in the viscosity, stiffness, Tg, Tm, and water absorption of the composites. The decomposition temperature of the composites showed a range of 302.41 to 361.22 °C; this decreased when the CFW increased. An increase in the CFW also produced greater and clearer phase separation and roughness on the fracture surface area

Development and characterization of a reflection paint with nano-ilmenite material for energy-saving in buildings

Low-rise buildings are suitable for cooling roofs to save energy in hot climates. Thermal reflection paints using titanium dioxide micronized particles, nano P-25, and nano-ilmenite were compared with commercial thermal reflection paints to evaluate thermal performance. nano-ilmenite material was synthesized using a hydrothermal technique. The chemical composition, size, and structure were characterized by XRF, SEM, and TEM. The color was measured according to ISO 1164–4. The reflectance in the UV–VIS–NIR region was measured according to ASTM E 903. The thermal performance was determined using a simulation test with an IR lamp and a field test. The results showed that they had been synthesized to nanofiber structure, increased titanium dioxide content (62.1%), and demonstrated the presence of hematite, metal oxides, and ceramics. In all thermal reflection paints, the results showed that there was a similarity in the lightness mode (L*) and blue-yellow mode (b*), which presents yellowness (0.98, 0.94) in thermal reflection paints using nanoparticles. The NIR and TSR reflectances of thermal reflection paint with nano-ilmenite were highest (56.8, 59.8%). The thermal performance properties measured using an IR camera for both samples (nano P-25 and nano-ilmenite) showed substances with low surface temperatures, indicating that they can block IR radiation. Therefore, thermal reflection paints using nano-ilmenite, which also acts as a barrier, can reduce the surface temperature. Improving thermal performance, which inhibits heat transfer or sunlight entering a building, can reduce the building's heating load demand