Polymers in concrete have received considerable attention over the past 30 years. Superplasticizers are one of the admixtures which have polymeric structure. In this study, polycarboxylate type slump-releasing dispersant, which is a copolymer of 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid (AMPS) and methacrylic acid (MAA), was synthesized in different feed compositions. The synthesis procedure of this copolymer was retrieved from literature. The derivatives of this water-soluble copolymer (AMPS-MAA) were synthesized by a macromonomer which was synthesized by the esterification of poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether (PEG) with MAA (PEGMA) and then copolymerizing this macromonomer with AMPS monomer, the resulting copolymer is AMPS-PEGMA. In order to study the methyl group effect on fluidity, the other type of macromonomer (PEGA), composed of PEG and acrylic acid (AA), was synthesized and copolymerized with AMPS monomer, giving AMPS-PEGA. The structures of synthesized polymers were verified by NMR and FT-IR analysis. The slump-releasing effect of the synthesized copolymers was studied in terms of reaction pH, composition, molecular weight, amount of PEG side chains, and molecular weight of PEG side chains. The AMPS-MAA copolymer with 40% AMPS content was the most effective in promoting the fluidity of cement pastes. In scope of reaction pH, the AMPS-MAA copolymer, synthesized at a pH of 11, gave the most effective result on fluidity of the cement pastes. In copolymers of PEG acrylate macromonomers and AMPS monomers, copolymers with 5% PEG acrylate content showed the highest fluidity both in copolymers of PEGA and PEGMA. In copolymers with PEG side chains, the 15% AMPS-PEGA copolymer synthesized at pH of 6 gave the most effective result on fluidity of cement pastes. In the study of mechanical properties of the mortar samples prepared by the copolymers selected, AMPS-PEGA copolymer with 25% PEG content showed the highest flexural strength, and AMPS-MAA copolymer with 60% AMPS content and a reaction pH of 11 gave the highest compressive strength. In this study, zeta potential measurements were also performed to analyze the fluidity behavior of the copolymers.

In this study, electrically conductive coating materials composed of epoxy resin and carbon black (CB) were prepared by applying two different mixing techniques (Grinding and Mechanical Mixing). The effect of carbon black addition, ultrasonication, mixing type and surface modification of carbon black on the morphologies, electrical and mechanical properties of the composites were investigated. According to test results, Grinding Method is much more efficient and for this method, percolation concentration was found as 2 vol %. The electrical resistivity value obtained at this composition is around 107 ohm.cm. Also, for the samples prepared by Grinding Method, the hardness increased by adding conductive filler, but the impact energy and adhesive strength decreased with increasing carbon black content. Ultrasonication was applied to the samples containing 2 vol % CB obtained by Grinding Method to reduce the electrical resistivity further. Three different ultrasonic mixing times were tried, however, no positive effect was observed on electrical and mechanical properties. Since the addition of carbon black has a negative effect on the processability of the mixture, it was aimed to obtain desired conductivity value at lower percolation concentration by modifying carbon black surface with different silane coupling agents and formamide. The best result in terms of electrical conductivity was obtained for the materials produced with formamide treated carbon black by Grinding Method. At 1 vol % concentration, the electrical resistivity was found as approximately 106 ohm.cm which is three orders smaller than the resistivity of materials prepared with untreated carbon black.

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of compatibilizers, fumed silica and mixing order of components on morphological, thermal, mechanical and flow properties of LDPE/Fumed silica nanocomposites. As compatibilizer(Co) / ethylene/n-butyl acrylate/maleic anhydride (E-nBA-MAH), ethylene/glycidyl methacrylate (E-GMA) and ethylene/methyl acrylate/glycidyl methacrylate (E-MA-GMA) Lotader&reg / resins / as silica Cab-o-sil&reg / M5 fumed silica were used. All samples were prepared by means of a lab scale co-rotating twin screw extruder and injection molded into standard samples. In the first step, individual effects of filler and compatibilizers were studied in binary systems with LDPE. Then, keeping the amount of compatibilizer constant at 5%, ternary nanocomposites were prepared by adding 2 or 5% of fumed silica using different component mixing orders. Among investigated mixing orders, mechanical test results showed that the best sequences of component addition are FO1 [(LDPE+Co)+M5] and FO2 [(LDPE+M5)+Co] mixing orders. Considering the compatibilizers, E-nBA-MAH terpolymer showed the highest performance in improving the mechanical properties, E-GMA copolymer also gave satisfactory results. According to the DSC analysis, since addition of fumed silica and compatibilizer does not influence the crystallization behavior of the compositions, it is concluded that, neither fumed silica nor any of the compatibilizers have nucleation activity on LDPE. MFI test results showed that, addition of fumed silica increases the melt viscosity, decreasing MFI values of samples. This change seems to be directly proportional to fumed silica amount.

Acryloyloxybenzoic acid (ABA) was prepared by the condensation reaction of acryloyl chloride with p-hydroxybenzoic acid in alkaline medium. The polymerization and grafting of ABA onto Polypropylene were anticipated to occur simultaneously in melt mixing at high temperature. The monomer showed liquid crystalline property. For a better dispersion of ABA in PP before graft copolymerization, a masterbatch of 50-50 (by weight) low density polyethylene + ABA was prepared, which was then used for 5, 10, 15 % ABA + PP mixtures in the Brabender Plasti Corder. Furthermore, these compositions were reprocessed at the same temperature in the molten state. Compression molding was used to prepare films for characterization experiments at 200 &ordm / C under 15000 psi for approximately 3-5 minutes. The graft copolymers were characterized by several techniques / DSC, FTIR, MFI, SEM and mechanical testing. In DSC thermograms the crystallization of PP was seen at approximately 160&ordm / C. An endothermic peak was also assigned to grafted PABA at 280&ordm / C . The incorporation of ABA onto the PP backbone as a graft copolymer (PABA-g-PP) at low percentages results in a possible rearrangement, where tensile strength values increased, while strain decreased. The grafting goes through thermal radicalic mechanism. MFI values were found to increase from 8.7 to 16.35 g/10 min at 10 wt % ABA, then decreased to 10.57 g/10 min at 15 wt % ABA. It is most likely that the presence of PABA produced easy orientational flow up to 10 % of ABA, but at 15 % ABA addition caused a slight decrease in MFI. The tensile test specimens were analyzed by Scanning Electron Microscope. None of the three samples exhibited phase separation. This observation confirms that the graft copolymerization occurrs in a homogenous manner onto PP. The brittle nature of material is observed at all three compositions.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of mold temperature, initial resin temperature, and the vacuum, applied at resin exit ports, on the mechanical properties of epoxy matrix woven glasss fiber reinforced composite specimens produced by Resin Transfer Molding (RTM). For this purpose, six different mold temperatures (25&ordm / , 40&ordm / , 60&ordm / , 80&ordm / , 100&ordm / , and 120&ordm / C), two initial resin temperatures (15&ordm / and 28&ordm / C), and vacuum (0.03 bar) and without vacuum (~1 bar) conditions were used. Specimens were characterized by using ultrasonic (C-Scan) inspection, mechanical tests (Tensile, Flexural, Impact), thermal analyses (Ignition Loss, TGA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was generally observed that mechanical properties of the specimens produced with a mold temperature of 60&ordm / C were the best (e.g. 16%, 43%, and 26% higher tensile strength, Charpy impact toughness and flexural strength values, respectively). When vacuum was not applied, the percentage of &ldquo / voids&rdquo / increased leading to a decrease in mechanical properties such as 26% in Charpy impact toughness and 5% in tensile and flexural strength. Lower initial resin temperature also decreased mechanical properties (e.g. 14% in tensile strenght and 18% in Charpy impact toughness).

There are many different types of fillers used for bitumen modification such as / silica, limestone, basalt, mica, oyster shells. Filler gives rigidity, stiffness or hardness, regulates thermal expansion and shrinkage, improves heat resistance, and modifies rheological properties of bituminous composites. The main objective of this study was to determine the effect of filler type and ratio on mechanical, thermal properties and morphologies of bitumen based composites. It was also aimed to improve the heat resistivity of the bituminous composite to obtain a material with good mechanical and heat isolation properties. Bituminous composites were prepared by using Brabender Plasti-Corder, PLV 151. Mixing was made at 180 &ordm / C with 60 rpm for 15 minutes. Two grades of bitumen as 20/30 and 50/70 penetrations were used. CaCO3, CaO, mica, baryte, kieselguhr and silaned kieselguhr were used as fillers in this study. Ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer, styrene&amp / #8211 / butadiene rubber, and styrene&amp / #8211 / butadiene&amp / #8211 / styrene block copolymer were used as polymers. According to the test results, using mica at low percentages had the effect of decreasing the viscosity of the bitumen due to its flow alignment property. Baryte gave high heat capacity and low heat conductivity to bituminous material. EVA containing samples showed the best combination on mechanical properties. The silanation process decreased the pore sizes as observed in mercury porosimetry experiments. A decreased amount of bitumen impregnation was obtained by the silanation process, clearly observed in SEM micrographs.

PA 66 nanocomposites and PA 66 blends were prepared using Cloisite 15A, Cloisite 25A and Cloisite 30B as organoclays and Lotader 2210 (E-BA-MAH), Lotader AX8840 (E-GMA) and Lotader AX8900 (E-MA-GMA) as impact modifiers. The effects of the composition, types of the components and the addition order of the nanocomposites on the morphology, mechanical, flow and thermal properties were investigated. Melt compounding step was carried out twice in a co-rotating twin-screw extruder. This was called as All-S mixing sequence when all the components were melt mixed, simultaneously. The concentration of the elastomer was determined as 5 wt% and the organoclay as 2 wt% to minimize agglomeration of the organoclay and decrease in the mechanical properties. The components which exhibited the best mechanical results and organoclay delamination in All-S mixing sequences were compounded by using different addition orders. Substantial increases were not observed in the tensile, impact, flexural and hardness test results of the nanocomposites compared to the polymer matrix that was twice extruded. Addition order of the components affected the properties of the nanocomposites and dispersion of the elastomeric domains and the organoclay. The best mechanical test results were obtained for All-S mixing sequence of (PA 66-15A-2210). The degree of organoclay dispersion is better in Cloisite 15A and Cloisite 25A containing nanocomposites than the ones which have Cloisite 30B. Low melt flow index values aided dispersion of the organoclay whereas the slight changes in the crystallinity did not significantly contribute to the changes in the mechanical properties of the nanocomposites or the blends.

Thiophene ended poly(ethylene oxide) (ThPEO) and random copolymer (RPEO) of 3-methylthienyl methacrylate and p-vinylbenzyloxy poly (ethyleneoxide) units were synthesized chemically. Further graft copolymerization of RPEO and ThPEO with pyrrole (Py) and thiophene (Th) were achieved in H2O - sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS), H2O - p-toluenesulphonic acid (PTSA) and acetonitrile (AN) - tetrabutylammonium tetrafluoroborate (TBAFB) solvent electrolyte couples via constant potential electrolyses. Characterizations were performed by cyclic voltammetry (CV), nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The morphologies of the films were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Conductivities of the samples were measured by using four-probe technique. Moreover, spectroelectrochemical and electrochromic properties of the copolymers obtained from thiophene were investigated by UV-Vis spectrometry and colorimetry. . Immobilizations of alcohol oxidase and polyphenol oxidase enzymes were performed in the matrices obtained via copolymerization of ThPEO and RPEO with pyrrole. Immobilization was carried out via entrapment of enzyme in matrices during the polymerization of pyrrole. Temperature optimization, operational stability and shelf-life of the enzyme electrodes were investigated. Maximum reaction rate (Vmax) and Michaelis-Menten constant (Km) were determined. It is known that wine includes phenolic groups that give astringency in high concentrations. Polyphenol oxidase (PPO) converts mono and diphenols to quinone. By analyzing the product, one can find out the amount of phenolic groups. By using the enzyme electrodes via immobilization of PPO, amount of phenolics in different wines were analyzed.

The objective of this study is to process and characterize the compatibilized blends of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and polyamide-6 (PA6) using olefin based reactive copolymers and subsequently to utilize this blend as a matrix material in short glass fiber (SGF) reinforced composites and organoclay based nanocomposites by applying melt processing technique. In this context, commercially available epoxydized and maleated olefinic copolymers, ethylene-methyl acrylate-glycidyl methacrylate (EMA-GMA) and ethylene-n butyl acrylate-carbon monoxide-maleic anhydride (EnBACO-MAH) were used as compatibilizers at different ratios. Compatibilizing performance of these two olefinic polymers was investigated through blend morphologies, thermal and mechanical properties as a function of blend composition and compatibilizer loading level. Incorporation of compatibilizer resulted in a fine morphology with reduced dispersed particle size. At 5 % EnBACO-MAH, the toughness was observed to be the highest among the blends produced. SGF reinforced ABS and ABS/PA6 blends were prepared with twin screw extrusion. The effects of SGF concentration and extrusion process conditions on the fiber length distribution, mechanical properties and morphologies of the composites were examined. The most compatible organosilane type was designated from interfacial tension and short beam flexural tests, to promote adhesion of SGF to both ABS and PA6. Increasing amount of PA6 in the polymer matrix improved the strength, stiffness and also toughness of the composites. Effects of compatibilizer content and ABS/PA6 ratio on the morphology and mechanical properties of 30% SGF reinforced ABS/PA6 blends were investigated. The most striking result of the study was the improvement in the impact strength of the SGF/ABS/PA6 composite with the additions of compatibilizer. Melt intercalation method was applied to produce ABS/PA6 blends based organoclay nanocomposites. The effects of process conditions and material parameters on the morphology of blends, dispersibility of nanoparticles and mechanical properties were investigated. To improve mixing, the screws of the extruder were modified. Processing with co-rotation yielded finer blend morphology than processing with counter-rotation. Clays were selectively exfoliated in PA6 phase and agglomerated at the interface of ABS/PA6. High level of exfoliation was obtained with increasing PA6 content and with screw speed in co-rotation mode. Screw modification improved the dispersion of clay platelets in the matrix.

In this study, 20/80 (weight %) Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) /High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Microfibrillar Reinforced Composites (MFC) were prepared by using high density polyethylene (HDPE) as the matrix material, poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) as the reinforcing component. Ethylene n-butyl acrylate-glycidyl methacrylate (E-nBA-GMA) and ethylene methyl acrylate (E-MA) as the compatibilizers in 1, 5, and 10 wt. %. The objective of this study is to produce MFCs based on PET and HDPE via extrusion-drawing-injection method and to characterize as extruded, as drawn and injection molded materials in terms of morphologies, and mechanical and thermal properties. In addition, the effect of compatibilizer type and content on properties of PET-HDPE composites was studied. For comparison purposes, conventional PET-HDPE composites with and without compatibilizer were prepared. Also, the effect of screw speed and drawing speed on the morphologies and mechanical and thermal properties were investigated. The effect of low and high injection temperature molding on morphologies were also observed. SEM analyses showed that, extruded blends became oriented after drawing. The fibrillar structure was preserved after injection molding. High injection molding temperature destroyed the structure of PET microfibers. In addition, it was also observed that the adhesion between HDPE and PET improved with the addition of the compatibilizers. Tensile strength and tensile modulus values of PET/HDPE MFCs increased with increasing drawing speed. Increasing the screw speed resulted in a slight decrease in tensile strength values. Addition of the compatibilizers to the system decreased tensile strength and tensile modulus values. Results of impact tests designated that the impact strength of the materials with and without MFC structure increased with the increasing amounts of E-nBAGMA. DSC analyses pointed out that, melting temperatures of HDPE and PET phase did not change significantly with increasing drawing speed or with the addition of the compatibilizer. As the drawing speed increased from 2.7 m/min to 6.2 m/min, degree of crystallinity of the drawn samples of the PET phase increased.