Fabrication of the Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube/Gelatin nanocomposite and the study of its structure and mechanical properties in relation to swelling

The gelatin/MWNT nanocomposite was prepared and its structure and properties was studied using differential scanning calorimetery (DSC), thermal gravimetrical analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). Gelatin based materials offer vast potential as biomaterial in biomedical field while the low mechanical properties hinders its application as biomaterial. MWNTs were incorporated into gelatin in order to improve the mechanical properties of gelatin. The relationship between the amount of MWNTs and the mechanical properties of the composites was investigated. Increase in MWNTs amount showed significant effect on the mechanical properties of gelatin. Swelling was also studied as function of the amount of MWNTs, pH of the medium and concentration of the salt to evaluate the actuation behavior of the MWNT/gelatin composite. Swelling increased initially but it decreased later on, which indicates that swelling was inhabited by MWNTs. The relationship of the water content with the melting of gelatin was studied by differential scanning calorimetery (DSC).