A method for preparing a polymer nanocomposite is provided with steps of (1) dissolving polyvinyl chloride; (2) dissolving polyethylene; (3) dissolving a polyvinyl chloride-polyethylene block copolymer; (4) adding a surfactant into a mixed solution obtained from the above-mentioned steps; (5) adding a light permeable material into the mixed solution; (6) adding an enforcement material into the mixed solution; (7) performing an ultrasonic mixing to the mixed solution; and (8) performing a rotary evaporation to the mixed solution.

Systems, methods, fuel cells, and mixtures to inhibit ionomer permeation into porous substrates using a crosslinked ionomer are described. A method includes preparing an ionomer premix, mixing a crosslinking additive with the ionomer premix to thereby form a crosslinked-ionomer solution, and adding catalyst particles to the crosslinked-ionomer solution to produce a catalyst ink. The ionomer premix includes an ionomer dispersed within a solvent. The catalyst ink includes the catalyst particles distributed homogenously therethrough. The catalyst ink may be cast onto a porous substrate and dried to thereby form a catalyst layer for use in a fuel cell.

A method for preparing keratin-based composites includes mixing polysaccharide nanoparticles and a keratin solution to form a nanoparticle-keratin solution; and solvent casting the nanoparticle-keratin solution to form the keratin-based composites.

Provided herein are composite materials comprising at least 70 wt. % thermally consolidated recovered paper and plastic fragments and less than 5,000 ng water-soluble endotoxin per gram of composite materials, as well as methods of preparing said composite materials and methods of sanitizing recovered waste materials.

Provided herein are composite materials comprising at least 70 wt. % thermally consolidated recovered paper and plastic fragments and less than 5,000 ng water-soluble endotoxin per gram of composite materials, as well as methods of preparing said composite materials and methods of sanitizing recovered waste materials.

A composite formulation for use in lightweight molded components includes an untreated low density filler, such as glass bubbles, a solvated polymer mixture, and polymer paste. In one embodiment the solvated polymer mixture is used to treat the low density filler to form a treated low density filler. The solvated polymer mixture many include a thermoplastic resin or a reactive resin and an additive package. The additive package may include a dispersing agent and a silane carrier composition.

A hydrogel of which the degradation is accurately controlled can be provided by a photodegradable hydrogel production method, the method comprising the steps of: reacting α-glucan having a weight average molecular weight of 2000 to 200,000 with a compound represented by formula I to introduce a group represented by formula II into the α-glucan; oxidizing the α-glucan having, introduced therein, the group represented by formula II with periodic acid or a periodate salt to introduce an aldehyde group into the α-glucan; and adding aminated carrageenan gel beads having polydopamine particles embedded therein to a gelling agent which has been prepared by introducing a group represented by formula II and an aldehyde group into α-glucan, and then causing the crosslinking reaction of the resultant product with a polythiol-type reducing agent to form the hydrogel.

An object of the present invention is to produce composite resin particles in which the original physical properties of PTFE derived from fine powder are maintained, and the present invention provides a method for producing composite resin particles, wherein the method includes: a first step in which fine powder containing polytetrafluoroethylene obtained by emulsion polymerization is pulverized in the presence of a ketone-based solvent; a second step in which the pulverized fine powder and a carbon nanomaterial are dispersed in the ketone-based solvent to produce a composite resin particles dispersion; a third step in which the composite resin particles are produced by removing the ketone-based solvent from the composite resin particle dispersion; and wherein the fine powder is pulverized so as to have an average particle diameter of 50 μm or less, and a temperature of the ketone-based solvent used in the first step is set to 20° C. or less.

Disclosed is the preparation of compatibilized thermoplastic vulcanizates with reduced crosslinked rubber dispersion sizes and dispersity. A cross-linkable ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymer with majority propylene (PEDM) is used to compatibilize a plastic and rubber blend of a polypropylene (PP) and an ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymer rubber, where the propylene content is less than 50 wt % (EPDM), in dynamic vulcanization and preparation of PP/EPDM thermoplastic vulcanizates. The resulting PP/EPDM thermoplastic vulcanizates typically exhibit a weight average equivalent dispersion diameter of less than 3 microns and a particle size polydispersity index (PSDI), or weight average over number average dispersion diameter, of less than 5. This reduction in crosslinked rubber dispersion size in a PP/EPDM TPV by using PEDM compatibilizers enhances the toughness of the vulcanizate product by raising both elongation to break and break stress.

A conductive fiber including a metal-nanobelt-carbon-nanomaterial composite. A manufacturing method thereof includes preparing a composite including a carbon nanomaterial and metal nanobelts and manufacturing a conductive fiber by mixing the composite with a polymer. A fibrous strain sensor and a manufacturing method thereof are also provided. Thereby, a conductive fiber including a metal-nanobelt-carbon-nanomaterial composite, which is able to increase conductivity of the conductive fiber through synthesis of metal nanobelts enabling area contact and to exhibit good contact between the carbon nanomaterial and the metal nanobelts due to formation of the metal nanobelts on the surface of the carbon nanomaterial and superior dispersion uniformity, and a fibrous strain sensor including the conductive fiber can be obtained. The conductive fiber can be effectively applied to a strain sensor based on a principle by which resistance drastically increases with an increase in a distance between metal nanobelts aligned in a fiber direction upon tensile strain of metal nanobelts enabling area contact.