Functionalized Boron Nitride Nanosheets/Poly(l-lactide) Nanocomposites and Their Crystallization Behavior

Abstract

In this work, hydroxyl-functionalized boron nitride nanosheet (OH-BNNS) was prepared and was blended with poly(l-lactide) (PLLA) to yield PLLA/OH-BNNS nanocomposites with excellent dispersion of OH-BNNS via the interaction of carbonyl in PLLA and hydroxyl in OH-BNNS. The effects of OH-BNNS on the crystallization and melting behaviors, isothermal crystallization kinetics, macroscopic crystal morphology and crystal structure of PLLA were studied by means of various techniques. The addition of OH-BNNS nanofillers can effectively accelerate the crystallization of PLLA and enhance the nucleation density, leading to a smaller spherulite size, increased crystallinity, a more obvious crystallization peak upon cooling but weakened cold crystallization behavior upon heating. Low OH-BNNS loading can increase the relative content of α-crystal, but the relative content of less perfect α′-crystal is increased at high OH-BNNS loading due to the strong interaction between PLLA and OH-BNNS.