The temperature dependence of viscoelastic properties of wood (Makanba)-polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) composites prepared by various methods was investigated to elucidate the interaction between wood and polymer.
The following results were obtained by using a vibrating reed method over the temperature range of 30∼200°C.
(1) The dispersion due to the micro-Brownian movement of PMMA formed in the cell wall of wood appears at a higher temperature than that of PMMA deposited on the permanent internal surface of wood.
(2) The wood-polymer composites prepared by polymerizing methyl methacrylate (MMA) in the cell wall of wood show a new dispersion above 150°C due to wood itself.
(3) A new dispersion appears around 120°C in the composites with MMA polymerized in decrystallized as well as originally amorphous regions of wood, but it does not appear in the composites prepared by the polymerization of MMA only in amorphous regions.
(4) When compared with the result of Handa et al., the above results 1 and 3 show that the form or the state of existence (coagulation) of polymer as well as the location of polymer within wood significantly affects the viscoelastic feature of wood-polymer composites.