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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/11375/24960
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DC FieldValueLanguage
dc.contributor.advisorThompson, Michael R.-
dc.contributor.advisorVlachopoulos, John-
dc.contributor.authorSaad, Ahmed Khaled Ah-
dc.date.accessioned2019-10-07T13:41:38Z-
dc.date.available2019-10-07T13:41:38Z-
dc.date.issued2019-
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11375/24960-
dc.description.abstractBeing the most abundant cause of unexpected brittle failures of polymers, environmental stress cracking (ESC) is a major issue for the plastics industry, accounting for approximately 15-40% of all plastic part failures in service. ESC is an intriguing phenomenon that is not yet well understood, which relates to the accelerated failure of a stressed polymer whilst the presence of an active medium, such as biodiesel. Unexpected failures of polyethylene parts in tanks aboard marine vessels that were operated with biodiesel has generated concerns in the polymer industry over the compatibility of this relatively new fuel, making investigations into these failures both urgent and essential for the process of change towards renewable fuel standards. Experimental trials carried out for a two-stage project investigating the compatibility of fresh and degraded biodiesel with polyethylene were used to suggest a plasticization mechanism targeting tie molecules (often related to micellular contaminants in a contacting medium) as the probable pathway for ESC of polyethylene with biodiesel. Preliminary analysis was done using the Bell Test (ASTM D1693) showing evidence of pure biodiesel as a stress cracking agent with an aggressiveness similar to a 10% biodiesel in water solution for which the majority of trials used. Results from the first stage of this study revealed evidence of differing modes of interaction for biodiesel and toluene (a known plasticizing agent) with the semi-crystalline polymer structure. The second stage utilized acoustic analysis to monitor internal stresses during long-term aging to better explain the theory of ESC for polyethylene with biodiesel, showing that both plasticization and ESC behaviors occurred.en_US
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.titleINVESTIGATING THE COMPATIBILITY OF BIODIESEL ON POLYETHYLENE THROUGH NONDESTRUCTIVE AND TRADITIONAL METHODSen_US
dc.typeThesisen_US
dc.contributor.departmentChemical Engineeringen_US
dc.description.degreetypeThesisen_US
dc.description.degreeMaster of Applied Science (MASc)en_US
dc.description.layabstractUnderstanding the compatibility of polymers with chemicals that they are exposed to is essential, particularly those used for liquid storage components like fuel tanks, making it vital to consider both short-term and long-term interactions under environmental conditions that regularly fluctuate. A two-stage project based on experimental trials has been conducted, using traditional testing methods and a novel non-destructive testing method based on ultrasonics, to evaluate the compatibility of biodiesel with different grades of Imperial Oil ltd. polyethylenes. In the first stage of the study, the plasticization effect of fresh and degraded biodiesel (in comparison to toluene) was investigated on polyethylene. Results were used in the second stage of this experiment to propose a plasticization mechanism targeting tie molecules as the proposed pathway for environmental stress cracking of biodiesel with polyethylene.en_US
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