Plant Oil-Based Nanocomposites

Recently, plant oil-based polymer composites have received considerable attention due to their potential to significantly improve and enhance the properties of neat polymer matrix. Incorporation of small amounts of filler leads to an improvement in material properties, such as modulus, strength, heat resistance, flame retardancy, and lowered gas permeability, which will extend their utility in a variety of advanced applications. Generally, the enhancement of thermomechnical properties of the plant oil-based nanocomposites over the polymer matrix is directly related to the compatibility and degree of the interfacial interaction between the polymer matrix and fillers as well as the formation of a network of interconnected filler particles. In this chapter, the substantial enhancement in mechanical, thermal, and morphological properties of plant oil-based polymers (mainly PU) will be highlighted for different types of surface modified and functionalized nanofillers including, natural fillers (e.g., cellulose and lignin), graphene, carbon nanotubes, and silica. The plant oil-based composites were characterized using various analytical techniques such as, DSC, DMA, TGA, X-ray, TEM, AFM, and mechanical tests to understand the structure-property relationships of these new bio-based nanostructured composites.