I-Corps: Novel approach in developing sustainable polymer composites

目前，以聚合物或聚合物复合材料为基础的产品缺少几个方面。第一个是机械强度，这可以通过纳米薄膜来潜在地提高。第二个问题是耐用性。第三个是可持续性，因为用木材生产的可持续填充物取代油基聚合物可以减少使用油基产品的需求。这项建议旨在开发性能优于现有解决方案的新一代高性能聚合物复合材料。这将创造一个非常令人兴奋的机会，大量生产新一代高性能可持续纳米填料。通过使用可持续生物基纳米填料，如表面改性纳米纤维(NCC)，可以在解决与传统纳米填料相关的挑战的同时，保持纳米复合材料的结构完整性。开发、优化和商业化制造这种材料的新工艺是这一提议的基础。使用纳米纤维素作为填充物是一种非常有前途的、可扩展的生产廉价绿色复合材料的方法。考虑到美国农业部的预测指出，纳米晶纤维素的应用预计到2020年仅在美国就将达到6000亿美元大关，这种填充物的机会非同寻常，因此拟议的技术也可以成为非常经济高效的解决方案。

Currently, several aspects are missing in the current polymer or polymer composites based products. The first one is mechanical strength, which can be potentially improved by nanofillers. The second one is durability. The third one is sustainability, as replacing oil based polymers with sustainable filler produced from wood can reduce the need of using oil based products. This proposal aims at developing a new generation of high performance polymer composites with properties superior to the already existing solutions. It is going to create a very exciting opportunity of having the new generation of high performance sustainable nanofillers produced in substantial quantities.Addressing the challenges related to traditional nanofillers while maintaining structural integrity of nanocomposites can be achieved by using sustainable bio-based nanofillers, such as surface modified Nano-Crystalline Cellulose (NCC). A development, optimization and commercializing of a novel process of making such materials is the basis of this proposal. Using nanocellulose as filler can be a very promising and scalable method of producing inexpensive 'green' composites. The proposed technology can be also very cost-efficient solution, given that USDA projections point out an extraordinary opportunity for this filler as nanocrystalline cellulose applications are expected to reach $600 billion mark by 2020 in the US alone.