Mechanical and Thermal Characterization of Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Copolymer/Sodium Silicate Composite Films

Intercalated composite films of Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) with sodium silicate (SS) are prepared using solvent casting technique. The films are prepared by varying the vinyl acetate percentage in EVA and suitable quantities of sodium silicate in wt/wt concentration are mixed in EVA solution with high speed stirring for homogenous dispersion. The functional groups present in both EVA and EVA/SS films are confirmed through FTIR spectral analysis. StressStrain curves are obtained for both EVA and EVA/SS films in order to determine the improvement in various tensile parameters. An increase in the thermal stability of the developed composite was recorded by thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA). Copyright © VBRI Press.