Fabrication and physical properties of oxide doped shape memory polymer blend composites

Nanocomposite materials occupy a wide range of applications due to their unique properties, from medical applications to packaging and various industries. This paper aims to develop and enhance the mechanical and thermal properties of naturally occurring polymers considered as alternatives to petroleum-based polymers. In this study, two nanocomposite polymers, PLA/PHA: TiO2 and PLA/PHA: Dy2O3, were created with 0%, 5%, 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40% of NPs by using the casting solution method at room temperature. The prepared samples were then subjected to XRD, FT-IR, DSC, TGA, SCM, UV characterization, mechanical tensile strength, magnetic test, and shape memory effect test. The results confirmed that TiO2 and Dy2O3 nanoparticles affected the physicochemical properties of the samples. The nanoparticles TiO2 increased the shape memory behaviour and reduced the elasticity of the nanostructure while providing thermal stability to the structure. The results of UV measurements showed that the energy band gap of the samples decreased to about 3.3 eV for the 40% TiO2 sample. While Dy2O3 nanoparticles had a significant effect on the behaviour of the samples, such as increased shape memory in the samples and increased elastic mode of the samples with increasing nanoparticle density, TGA findings confirmed the thermal stability of the samples. The addition of TiO2 and Dy2O3 nanoparticles in different amounts affects the physical and chemical properties of nanocomposites that can be exploited in related fields.