PP and Nanofibrillated-PET Composites from Melt Blowing: Fundamentals to Scale-Up
type: CreativeWork
description: Recent research has extensively focused on the production of micro- or nano-fibrillated composite (M/NFC) materials. In these composites, a polymer-reinforced polymer is created by extensionally drawing blends with a sea-island morphology. Initially, the reinforcement domains are dispersed within the matrix, and then a large extensional deformation is applied, causing the domains to in-situ fibrillate into long-aspect ratio fibrils. These micro-/nano-scale diameter fibrils, with their high interfacial surface area, significantly enhance mechanical properties such as strength and toughness, and can provide functional properties. The use of inexpensive commodity polymers makes this a cost-effective method for nanocomposite creation, with polyethylene terephthalate (PET) reinforced for polypropylene (PP) explored in this thesis.Melt blowing is a widely utilized technique for creating polymeric non-woven materials by drawing polymer above its melting temperature using high-speed, high-temperature air. This results in higher extensibility during drawing, thereby producing super-fine diameter fibers with tighter pore morphologies. Despite the significant capabilities of melt blowing machines, their full potential remains underexplored for M/NFC creation. To better understand the key factors influencing melt blown nanofibrillation, the formation of non-woven PP fabrics was systematically analyzed. While optimizing these parameters to produce finer fibers and pores, high quality fabrics were created, which could be suitable for applications such as N95 masks and HEPA filters. Therefore, the filtration and permeability properties of the fabrics were analyzed and related to the structural changes. Additional UV photocatalytic capabilities were provided by incorporating TiO2 nanoparticles, which enabled wastewater cleansing and E. coli bacteria removal. Both melt blown and spunbonded nanofibrils were compared in terms of their morphology and final reinforcement performance aft…
abstract: Recent research has extensively focused on the production of micro- or nano-fibrillated composite (M/NFC) materials. In these composites, a polymer-reinforced polymer is created by extensionally drawing blends with a sea-island morphology. Initially, the reinforcement domains are dispersed within the matrix, and then a large extensional deformation is applied, causing the domains to in-situ fibrillate into long-aspect ratio fibrils. These micro-/nano-scale diameter fibrils, with their high interfacial surface area, significantly enhance mechanical properties such as strength and toughness, and can provide functional properties. The use of inexpensive commodity polymers makes this a cost-effective method for nanocomposite creation, with polyethylene terephthalate (PET) reinforced for polypropylene (PP) explored in this thesis.Melt blowing is a widely utilized technique for creating polymeric non-woven materials by drawing polymer above its melting temperature using high-speed, high-temperature air. This results in higher extensibility during drawing, thereby producing super-fine diameter fibers with tighter pore morphologies. Despite the significant capabilities of melt blowing machines, their full potential remains underexplored for M/NFC creation. To better understand the key factors influencing melt blown nanofibrillation, the formation of non-woven PP fabrics was systematically analyzed. While optimizing these parameters to produce finer fibers and pores, high quality fabrics were created, which could be suitable for applications such as N95 masks and HEPA filters. Therefore, the filtration and permeability properties of the fabrics were analyzed and related to the structural changes. Additional UV photocatalytic capabilities were provided by incorporating TiO2 nanoparticles, which enabled wastewater cleansing and E. coli bacteria removal. Both melt blown and spunbonded nanofibrils were compared in terms of their morphology and final reinforcement performance aft…
author: Mark, Lun Howe
date published: 2024-11
date modified: 2026-07-27T21:28:05Z
provider: University of Toronto
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Toronto

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/141275