@article{ffb308773a7e4e2f9c93735bfdce99d8,
title = "Toughening Cellulose: Compatibilizing Polybutadiene and Cellulose Triacetate Blends",
abstract = "We report the synthesis of an ABA triblock copolymer of the structure CTA-b-PB-b-CTA (CTA = cellulose triacetate and PB = polybutadiene) and its ability to compatibilize immiscible CTA/PB polymer blends. CTA-b-PB-b-CTA was synthesized via ring-opening metathesis polymerization of cyclooctadiene (COD) in the presence of CTA containing a single olefin on the reducing end. The ABA triblock copolymer was incorporated into CTA/PB blends, resulting in films that were clear, tough, and creaseable, and increases in modulus, elongation at break, and toughness were observed with addition of as little as 1 wt % compatibilizer. Scanning electron microscopy revealed well-defined PB phases in the CTA matrix that decreased in domain size as more compatibilizer was added. This work may enhance the application scope of CTA and other cellulose-derived renewable polymers.",
author = "Arrington, {Kyle J.} and Haag, {James V.} and French, {Eric V.} and Mitsuhiro Murayama and Edgar, {Kevin J.} and Matson, {John B.}",
note = "Funding Information: *E-mail: jbmatson@vt.edu. ORCID Kevin J. Edgar: 0000-0002-9459-9477 John B. Matson: 0000-0001-7984-5396 Author Contributions The manuscript was written through contributions of all authors. All authors have given approval to the final version of the manuscript. Funding This work was supported in part by the Dreyfus Foundation and the Virginia Tech Department of Chemistry. We thank Eastman Chemical Company for supporting KJA with an Eastman Cellulose Fellowship. Notes The authors declare no competing financial interest. Funding Information: We thank Josh Wolfgang for SEC analysis, Anastasia Volokhova for assistance with DSC, and the Virginia Tech Institute for Critical Technologies and Applied Science (ICTAS) Nanoscale Characterization and Fabrication Laboratory (NCFL) for SEM. J.V.H. and M.M. acknowledge support from the Virginia Tech National Center for Earth and Environmental Nanotechnology Infrastructure, a member of the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI), supported by NSF (ECCS 1542100).",
year = "2019",
month = apr,
day = "16",
doi = "10.1021/acsmacrolett.9b00136",
language = "English",
volume = "8",
pages = "447--453",
journal = "ACS Macro Letters",
issn = "2161-1653",
publisher = "American Chemical Society",
number = "4",
}