Thermomechanical and flexural properties of chopped silk fiber-reinforced poly(butylene succinate) green composites: effect of electron beam treatment of worm silk

The effect of electron beam treatment on the thermomechanical and flexural properties of chopped silk fiber-reinforced poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) green composites was studied for the first time in this work. The surface topological changes in worm silk fibers before and after the electron beam irradiation at various doses (5-100 kGy) were observed. Dynamic mechanical and flexural properties and thermal expansion behavior of neat PBS and silk/PBS green composites were investigated by means of dynamic mechanical analysis, three-point flexural test, and thermomechanical analysis. The irradiated silk/PBS composite result was compared with neat PBS and un-irradiated silk/PBS counterparts. It was concluded that use of electron beam irradiation at an appropriate dosage may contribute to an enhancement of the dynamic mechanical and flexural properties as well as to the thermodimensional stability of silk-based green composites. The result revealed that the property enhancement was most profound at the electron beam absorption dose of 20 kGy.