The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of different yarn twisting methods on physical properties. Plain single jersey structured fabrics were knitted from Kevlar yarn, and from Kevlar/HPPE, and from Kevlar/Basalt fiber, and from Kevlar/Glass fiber and Kevlar/Stainless steel fiber blended and core-spun yarns. and then, The fabrics were coated NBR Latex. The physical properties, including tear strength, modulus, degree of penetration, heat resistance, and cut resistance of the knitted fabrics were investigated and compared. Kevlar/HPPE blended yarn fabrics recorded the highest heat resistance (13 Sec.). and Kevlar/HPPE blended yarn fabrics had good cut resistance (Cut Level 4).

Emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber silica wet masterbatch (ESBR silica WMB) technology was studied to develop highly filled and highly dispersed silica compounds, involving the preparation of a composite by co-coagulating the modified silica and the rubber latex in a liquid phase. Previous studies have shown that when manufacturing ESBR silica WMB/Butadiene silica dry masterbatch (BR silica DMB) blend compounds, preparing BR silica dry masterbatch and mixing it with ESBR silica WMB gave excellent results. However, WMB still has the problem of lower crosslink density due to residual surfactants. Therefore, in this study, tetrabenzylthiuram disulfide (TBzTD) was added instead of diphenyl guanidine (DPG) in the ESBR silica WMB/BR silica DMB blend compounds and sulfur/CBS contents were increased to evaluate their cure characteristics, crosslink densities, mechanical properties, and dynamic viscoelastic properties. TBzTD was found to be more effective in increasing the crosslink density and to produce superior properties compared to DPG. In addition, with increasing sulfur/CBS contents, mechanical properties and rolling resistance were enhanced due to high crosslink density, but the abrasion resistance was not significantly changed because of the toughness.

Gold nanoparticles were synthesized by reacting potassium tetrachloroaurate (KAuCl4), potassium carbonate (K2CO3), and isopropyl alcohol in the presence of fullerene oxide [C60(O)n, n ≥ 1], which was, in turn, prepared from [C60] fullerene and m-chloroperoxybenzoic acid under refluxing conditions. The crystallinity and morphology of the prepared gold nanoparticles were confirmed by UV-vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy. The activity of the gold nanoparticles in the reduction of 4-nitroaniline was measured in order to determine its capability as a catalyst.

The characterization of the ozone oxidation for raw natural rubber (NR) was investigated under controlled conditions through image and fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) analysis. The ozone oxidation was performed on a transparent thin film of raw NR coated on a KBr window in a dark chamber at 40oC under low humidity conditions to completely exclude thermal, moisture, or light oxidation. The ozone concentration was set at 40 parts per hundred million (pphm). Before or after exposure to ozone, the image of the thin film for raw NR was observed at a right or tilted angle. FT-IR absorption spectra were measured in the transmission mode according to ozone exposure time. The ozone oxidation of NR was determined by the changes in the absorption peaks at 1736, 1715, 1697, and 833 cm-1, which were assigned to an aldehyde group (-CHO), a ketone group (-COR), an inter-hydrogen bond between carbonyl group (-C=O) from an aldehyde or a ketone and an amide group (-CONH-) of protein, and a cis-methine group (cis-CCH3=CH-), respectively. During ozone exposure period, the results indicated that the formation of the carbonyl group of aldehyde or ketone was directly related to the decrement of the double bond of cis-1,4-polyisoprene. Only carbonyl compounds such as aldehydes or ketones seemed to be formed through chain scission by ozone. Long thin cracks with one orientation at regular intervals, which resulted in consecutive chain scission, were observed by image analysis. Therefore, one possible two-step mechanism for the formation of aldehyde and ketone was suggested.

Four different polymer compounds were manufactured to make cable sheaths for the shipping industry. Two kinds of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) as the main matrix polymers and EVA-grafted maleic anhydride (EVA-g-MAH) as the coupling agent were selected for compounding with fire retardant, crosslinking agent, filler, plasticizer, and other additives. The properties of the four compounded materials were investigated with different contents of the fire retardant, silanecoated magnesium dihydroxide (S-MDH). In the rheology evaluation, the t90 and ΔT values increased with increasing SMDH contents. On the other hand, the tensile strength decreased with increasing S-MDH content due to a relative decrease in binder polymers. With increasing S-MDH content, fire resistance increased, but cold resistance showed no obvious enhancement due to the polar effect of vinyl acetate in EVA.

Shrink film is currently being used for plastic container lavels to avoid the use of glue. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle lavels also use shrink films in the same PET materials for easy recycling of PET bottles. An air layer is generated between the shrink film and PET bottle surface due to the bent shape of the bottle surface. This air layer can insulate external heat, as air has a relatively lower thermal conductivity. In this study, the insulation property of the air layer was examined by computer simulation. Two PET bottle models were used, one with and the other without an air layer between the PET bottle surface and lavel. The two bottle models were filled with cold liquid and exposed to room temperature for 6 h, and the temperatures of the contents were then compared. The results showed that the temperature of the contents in the bottle with the air layer was lower than that without the air layer by at least 2°C. This study suggests an effective lavel design of PET bottles while ensuring that the temperature of the bottle contents is maintained.

Many scientific approaches have been developed for the preparation of alternative crosslinker system of amino resins and isocyanate prepolymers. Herein, copolymerization of trimethoxy silane with N-butoxymethyl acrylamide was performed, and the product was reacted with hydroxyl groups in the alkyl main chain without the need for an additional crosslinker. For the crosslinker synthesized herein, the molecular weight, glass transition temperature, and viscosity increased with increasing content of N-butoxymethyl acrylamide.

Polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) was filled with glass fiber (GF), aramid fiber (AF), and solid lubricants to improve the mechanical properties and wear resistance. The addition of GF effectively enhanced the tensile strength, flexural modulus, and impact strength of PPS, while solid lubricants such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), and tungsten disulfide (WS2) lowered the friction coefficients of the composites to below 0.3. The ball nut and motor pulley of the electric power steering (EPS) were manufactured using the PPS composites, and feasibility was ascertained thereafter by conducting the durability test. The composites filled with GF and AF showed high mechanical strength, but slip occurred at the interface between the pulley and belt while testing above 50°C. When small amounts of lubricants were added, the slip was no longer detected because of the suppression of friction heat. It is realized that the low friction as well as high mechanical properties is important to ensure the reliability of plastic pulleys.

In this study, the effects of filler particle size and shape on the physical properties of silicone rubber composites were investigated using inorganic fillers (Minusil 5, Celite 219, and Nyad 400) except silica, which was already present as a reinforcing filler of silicone rubber. Fillers with small particle sizes are known to facilitate the formation of the bound rubber by increasing the contact area with the polymer. However, in this experiment, the bound rubber content of Celite 219- added silicone composite was higher than that of Minusil 5-added silicone composite. This was attributed to the porous structure of Celite 219, which led to an increase in the internal surface area of the filler. When the inorganic fillers were added, both thermal decomposition temperature and thermal stability were improved. The bound rubber formed between the silicone rubber and inorganic filler affected the degree of crosslinking of the silicone composite. It is well-known that as the size of the reinforcing filler decreases, the reinforcing effect increases. However, in this experiment, the hardness of the composite material filled with Celite 219 was the highest compared to the other three composites. Furthermore, the highest value of 2.19 MPa was observed for 100% modulus, and the fracture elongation was the lowest at 469%. This was a result of excellent interaction between Celite 219 filler and silicone rubber.

Controlled mass transport in response to stimuli is essential for drug carriers. The complexity of the signaling system under physiological conditions has led researchers to develop precise nanocontainers that respond to stimuli in the physiological environment. Owing to several reasons, soft nanocontainers such as liposomes and micelles have been investigated for use as drug delivery systems. However, such carriers often suffer from the undesired leakage of drug molecules. In contrast, inorganic nanocontainers are robust, and their surfaces can be easily functionalized. For example, mesoporous silica nanoparticles equipped with gatekeeper molecules are increasingly being used for the controlled release of drug molecules in response to the desired stimuli. Since the development of the first hybrid nanocontainer comprising molecular machines, multiple versions of such gatekeeper systems featuring significantly improved stability and precise response to stimuli have been reported. In this study, various methods for incorporating photoresponsive nanocontainers with porous channels are developed.