Thermal stability and thermal degradation kinetics of nanocomposites
play an important role in many applications. In this study, nanocomposites based on
poly (lactic acid) (PLA)/graphene containing 0.5 and 1 wt% were prepared via
solution method. Functionalized graphene were prepared by acid treatment followed
by grafting PLA on their surfaces. The functionalized graphene was characterized
using fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman, elemental analysis,
Fourier transform infrared attenuated total reflection (FTIR-ATR), Dynamic mechanical
thermal analysis (DMTA) and thermogravimetry analysis (TGA). The
results revealed a successful functionalization reaction. The morphology of
nanocomposites was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Thermal
kinetics of samples was studied using TGA in multiple heating rates (5, 10, 20 and
30 C/min). Flynn–Wall–Ozawa (FWO) and Vyazovkin (VYZ) methods were
considered as isoconversional models. Although the assumptions of the applied
models were different, there was a good agreement between the models and obtained
activation energies.
