AI Summary & Key Takeaways
AI InsightThe results showed that the sepiolite white powder had 20.72 wt.% CaO and approximately half of the 20.81 wt.% SiO2 as compared to the sepiolite gray powder.
📌 3 Key Takeaways
Abstract
In this study, poly vinyl chloride (PVC)/ sepiolite composites were produced using an extruder. Two different sepiolite powders: white and gray were added to the PVC in order; 5 wt.%, 10 wt.%, 15 wt.% and 20 wt.%. The morphology alteration, chemical behavior and mechanical properties of the powders and the composites were examined by X-ray fluorescence (XRF), tensile test, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and ultimate tensile strength (UTS). The results showed that the sepiolite white powder had 20.72 wt.% CaO and approximately half of the 20.81 wt.% SiO2 as compared to the sepiolite gray powder. The XRD analysis confirmed that the structure of calcined white sepiolite contained dolomite, while gray calcined-sepiolite contained zeolite. The composites with 5 wt.% sepiolite white or gray powders exhibited higher tensile strength. Increasing the quantity of both sepiolite powders in the composites deteriorated the surface with cracks and shifted the thermal degradation of the sepiolite gray toward higher temperatures.