A Novel Way of Adhering PET onto Protein (Wheat Gluten) Plastics to Impart Water Resistance

Abstract

This study presents an approach to protect wheat gluten (WG) plastic materials against water/moisture by adhering it with a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film using a diamine (Jeffamine (R)) as a coupling agent and a compression molding operation. The laminations were applied using two different methods, one where the diamine was mixed with the WG powder and ground together before compression molding the mixture into plates with PET films on both sides. In the other method, the PET was pressed to an already compression molded WG, which had the diamine brushed on the surface of the material. Infrared spectroscopy and nanoindentation data indicated that the diamine did act as a coupling agent to create strong adhesion between the WG and the PET film. Both methods, as expected, yielded highly improved water vapor barrier properties compared to the neat WG. Additionally, these samples remained dimensionally intact. Some unintended side effects associated with the diamine can be alleviated through future optimization studies.

Keywords

PET; lamination; nanoindentation; water vapor barrier; interface

Published in

Coatings
2018, volume: 8, number: 11, article number: 388
Publisher: MDPI

SLU Authors

• Capezza, Antonio José

  • Department of Plant Breeding, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    
  • Royal Institute of Technology (KTH)

UKÄ Subject classification

Polymer Technologies

Publication identifier

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings8110388

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/97358