NANOTENOLOGY APPLIED TO TEXTILE AMONG STUDENTS OF MATERIALS ENGINEERING FOR SKILL DEVELOPMENT

Objetivo: In aiming to obtain fibers with enhanced thermal and mechanical properties, graphene based textile fibers with 144 filaments were developed using an approach in which the PP/GnP (polypropylene/graphene nanoplatelets) nanocomposite was employed as conductive material in a fiber with circular cross-section geometry. Método: The kinetics of thermal degradation was evaluated by the Broido method using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Resultados: Activation energy was enhanced from 260.6 kJ.mol-1 to 337.4 kJ.mol-1 compared to the neat PP. GnP increased the thermal stability of the PP, slowing its degradation by thermal depolymerization. Furthermore, the degree of crystallization declined as the GnP content increased, reducing the tenacity of the yarn, but improving its elastic modulus from 91.9 to 95.9 cN/tex, being a promising alternative to produce smart textiles. Conclusão: In conclusion, it has been confirmed that GnP loading up to 1% (w/w) can be incorporated into polypropylene by melt spinning and that the resulting nanocomposite fibers are suitable for several applications in the textile industry.