Novel bio-based composites of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA)/distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS)

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2014-01-01
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Lu, Hong
Madbouly, Samy
Schrader, James
Kessler, Michael
Grewell, David
Graves, William
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Grewell, David
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Materials Science and Engineering
Materials engineers create new materials and improve existing materials. Everything is limited by the materials that are used to produce it. Materials engineers understand the relationship between the properties of a material and its internal structure — from the macro level down to the atomic level. The better the materials, the better the end result — it’s as simple as that.
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Horticulture
The Department of Horticulture was originally concerned with landscaping, garden management and marketing, and fruit production and marketing. Today, it focuses on fruit and vegetable production; landscape design and installation; and golf-course design and management.
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Materials Science and EngineeringHorticultureAgricultural and Biosystems Engineering
Abstract

The PHA/DDGS composite is a promising low-cost, bio-based material for use in crop containers for the horticulture industry. This research effort has quantified the effects on mechanical and thermal properties of adding different amounts of DDGS to a PHA matrix. PHA and DDGS were mixed using a twin-screw microcompounder. Fracture surface morphology and thermal and rheological properties were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and rheometer measurements. The adhesion between PHA and DDGS decreased with an increase in DDGS content from 10% to 30%. Melting temperature and crystalline temperature decreased with the increasing content of DDGS filler, indicating that PHA and DDGS interacted favorably. The complex viscosity and elastic shear modulus of the blends were increased by the increasing DDGS content. The storage modulus and glass transition temperature showed little change across the different ratios of DDGS, indicating that DDGS should be a useful filler that can decrease the cost of PHA-based materials significantly while preserving the dynamic mechanical properties and glass transition temperature.

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This is a manuscript of an article published as Lu, Hong, Samy A. Madbouly, James A. Schrader, Micheal R. Kessler, David Grewell, and William R. Graves. "Novel bio-based composites of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA)/distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS)." RSC Advances 4, no. 75 (2014): 39802-39808. DOI: 10.1039/C4RA04455J. Posted with permission.

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Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 UTC 2014
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