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Additively manufactured fuels are becoming more common in the area of hybrid rockets due to the enhanced possibilities provided by computer aided design and improved additive material technology. When integrated with a highly compliant yet energetic paraffin wax, the additive manufactured material can help support the paraffin wax during the burn, and improve overall performance. This study investigates thin-walled acrylonitrile butadiene styrene structures that separate paraffin wax into azimuthally partitioned cells. The fuel grains are tested using a vertical test stand, custom nitrous system, and data acquisition system. The computer program Chemical Equilibrium with Applications is used to compare common hybrid fuels such as sorbitol, polybutadiene acrylic acid acrylonitrile, and poly(methyl methacrylate) along with the manufactured fuel. The experimental results indicate the promise of higher performance using paraffin. The analyses, however, show that refinements in grain design are necessary to fully realize the advantages of paraffin.

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The development of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) resins for use in rotational molding would provide a medium performance material, thus opening doors to new markets for the rotational molding industry. Unfortunately, ABS resins have shown serious problems during the rotational molding process, namely discoloration, bridging, and poor impact strength. It is believed that these effects are due to degradation of the carbon-carbon double bond in the butadiene, through attack by either oxygen or heat. Previous efforts have shown some success in addressing these issues. However, additional improvements are necessary to make ABS resins commercially viable to rotational molders. This study, fourth in a series of similar projects conducted though Brigham Young University, was focused on remediation of the ABS difficulties via two different approaches. First, a survey of several additives was performed with the intent of investigating four different strategies: increased protection from oxygen, decreased butadiene concentration, increased butadiene concentration, and promotion of flow. The best formulation was achieved when 15 wt % of a benzoate ester (XP-2280 available though ChemPoint) was blended into MAGNUM 342 EZ, an ABS resin (The Dow Chemical Company). This formulation showed the best balance between increased impact strength and improvement of cosmetic properties. Second, optimization of several rotational molding processing parameters was executed. These included particle size distribution of the resin, drying of the resin, internal mold atmosphere, and oven temperature. It was found that using coarse particle sizes (ground at 20-mesh rather than the industry standard of 35-mesh) increased the impact strength by about 19%. None of the other parameters proved to have a significant effect upon the system, except for the use of a nitrogen atmosphere, which lowered the impact strength. Final properties testing of this best formulation at the optimal processing conditions showed increased impact strength from 2 ft-lbs (the previous best value) to 8 ft-lbs. There was also a marginal decrease in surface hardness (95 to 78 on the Rockwell R scale) and yield tensile strength (3,900 psi to 3,300 psi). Larger differences were observed in flexural modulus (200,000 psi to 110,000 psi) and heat distortion temperature (95°C to 61°C). Therefore, these formulation and processing changes show a trade-off where stiffness and thermal stability (i.e. flexural modulus and heat distortion temperature) can be sacrificed for an increase in toughness and aesthetics, made manifest by increased impact strength, elimination of bridging, and eradication of discoloration.

An introduction is given to the background theory and scientific literature of the major subject areas of interest in this thesis, namely the chemistry of free radical and anionic polymerisation, molecular weight control in each type of polymerisation, polymerisation reactors, computer simulation of polymerisation processes and polymer characterisation by gel permeation chromatography. A novel computer model has been devised, based on the analysis of the polymerisation process in terms of the reaction extent of each reactant and the use of generation functions to describe the concentration of living and dead polymeric species, for the free radical, solution polymerisation of methylmethacrylate in a CSTR. Both heat and mass balance expressions have been described. Conversion, Mn and Mw were monitored. To test the model a reactor was designed and constructed. A detailed description of the reactor and the experimental conditions used for the validation of the model are given. The results of these studies are presented and excellent agreement is shown between model predictions and experiments up to 30% conversion for Mn w and % conversion. A similar study is described for the anionic polymerisation of styrene in tetrahydrofuran as solvent, in a CSTR. In this work the computer model becomes 'stiff' when realistic rate constants are introduced in the kinetic expressions. Experimental difficulties were encountered in obtaining reproducible results in the anionic work. A new approach of using 'scavengers' as protecting agents for the living chains is described. A scavenger was successfully employed in the preparation of block copolymers using a tubular reactor. Block copolymerisation, in addition to providing a means of checking the number of the 'living' chains inside the reactor, is of interest in its own right. All the experimental findings are discussed in relation to the currently accepted views found in the scientific literature.

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The spherulitic growth rate data for a molecular weight series of isotactic polystyrene are analyzed in context of the Lauritzen-Hoffman kinetic theory of polymer crystallization. The primary objectives of the study are to critically test the Lauritzen-Hoffinan theory under conditions not rigorously investigated before and to gain a better understanding of the molecular weight dependence of crystal growth rate for isotactic polystyrene. The analyses yield values for fundamental kinetic and thermodynamic quantities associated with polymer crystallization. The physical meaning of the resulting parameters is assessed by comparing these results to those obtained from methods independent of crystal growth rate or crystallization theory altogether. This study differs from others reported in the literature in a number of ways, such as, the narrow molecular weight distribution and the molecular weight range of polystyrenes investigated. Also, growth rate measurements were extended to higher temperatures and a more appropriate kinetic equation for crystal growth rate analysis was applied. The majority of published studies that have used the Lauritzen-Hoffman theory applied an approximated form of the kinetic equation which does not fully describe the temperature dependence of polymer crystallization. The results of the study show that a transition from molecular weight dependent to independent crystal growth rate occurs at a molecular weight of about 250,000 g/mole for isotactic polystyrene. Also, comparison of viscoelastic and crystal growth rate data indicate that the Vogel form of the transport term in the Lauritzen Hoffman kinetic growth rate equation correctly describes the temperature dependence of molecular transport for the crystallization process of isotactic polystyrene. Furthermore, the study suggests that the equilibrium melting temperature for the polymer is significantly higher than the value that has been generally accepted for the past 25 years. The study also provided the opportunity to investigate various other factors and theories associated with polymer crystallization. For example, the theoretical relationship between the crystal's lateral surface free energy, σ, and the characteristic ratio, C_∞, was evaluated. Also, the spherulitic morphology as a function of molecular weight and temperature was examined by scanning electron microscopy, SEM. / Ph. D.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:36:55Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Paula Aparecida Bergamini.pdf: 11467964 bytes, checksum: f444fac5ebd5632e2cdcc942570f6e37 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-08-10 / This study proposes the production and characterization of blends of ABS/PC through reuse of discarded PC in the automotive panel production process. The developed alloy ratios are (ABS/PC) 30/70, 50/50 and 70/30, in addition to the neat materials. For comparative purposes the mixtures were developed for both materials recycled PC (PCr) and neat PC (PCn). The blends were processed in a twin screw extruder under controled heating temperature. / Este estudo propõe a produção e caracterização de blendas de ABS/PC por meio do reuso do policarbonato (PC) descartado no processo de produção de painéis automotivos. As proporções de mistura desenvolvidas para estudo foram (ABS/PC) 30/70, 50/50 e 70/30, além dos materiais puros. Para efeitos comparativos, as misturas foram desenvolvidas tanto com o PC reciclado (PCr) como com o PC natural (PCn). As blendas foram processadas em extrusora de dupla rosca, sob temperatura controlada.

This master’s thesis was conducted at Linköping University in collaboration with ToyotaMaterial Handling in Mjölby to explore potential applications of recycled plastic in forklifttrucks. The primary objective was to identify the most suitable recycled plastic to be usedon the top cover of the BT Levio LWI160, which served as the focal point of this project.This was done in order to address the research questions: "What types of mechanical- andindustrial design requirements are affected when using recycled plastic (of various composi-tions), and to which new requirements and changes will result from this?" and "What are themajor mechanical- and industrial design challenges, advantages & disadvantages of switchingto recycled plastic material, considering economic and sustainability factors." The study concludes that the requirements of the top cover will largely remain unchanged.The use of PP 20GF necessitates further testing for structural integrity and quality con-sistency in recycled material. This material’s harder, less ductile nature may require newimpact testing and recycling processes. Industrial design benefits include simplified colourchoices due to the material’s transparent base hue, although the dark brown colour of re-cycled plastics limits options. Ensuring consistency across batches, minimising costs, andaddressing surface defects and purity issues are critical challenges. Despite uncertainties,switching to recycled plastic can reduce CO2 emissions by up to 24% and attract environ-mentally conscious customers