The deposited data contain experimental results obtained from uniaxial extensional rheology, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), tensile testing, and crystallization analysis of neat polylactide (PLA) and PLA nanocomposites containing halloysite nanoclay (HNC) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). The deposited datasets include extensional viscosity data, nonisothermal DSC heating and cooling thermograms, half-time crystallization data, and tensile stress–strain curves. The investigated materials include neat PLA, binary PLA/HNC and PLA/PTFE nanocomposites, and ternary PLA/HNC/PTFE nanocomposites with different HNC and PTFE contents. The PTFE was introduced as as-polymerized powder and undergoes in situ fibrillation during melt compounding, forming a nanofibrillar network within the PLA matrix. The deposited data support the analysis of the effects of HNC and in situ-generated PTFE nanofibrils on the rheological, thermal, crystallization, and mechanical behavior of PLA-based nanocomposites.
Extensional viscosity measurements were performed using an ARES LS2 strain-controlled rheometer (TA Instruments, USA) equipped with an extensional viscosity fixture (EVF). Rectangular specimens with dimensions of 18 × 10 × 0.7 mm³ were prepared by compression molding at 170 °C. Uniaxial extension measurements were performed at 175 °C at a constant Hencky strain rate of 0.1 s⁻¹. The measurements were used to evaluate the extensional viscosity and strain-hardening behavior of neat PLA, binary PLA/HNC and PLA/PTFE nanocomposites, and ternary PLA/HNC/PTFE nanocomposites.
Differential scanning calorimetry measurements were performed using a DSC Q20 instrument (TA Instruments, USA). Approximately 6–7 mg of each sample was sealed in aluminum pans and analyzed under a nitrogen atmosphere. Nonisothermal heating and cooling scans were performed at a rate of 10 °C/min. The first heating scan was used to eliminate the previous thermal history, followed by controlled cooling and a second heating scan. Isothermal crystallization experiments were performed by heating the samples to 200 °C, equilibrating for 3 min, cooling to selected crystallization temperatures between 80 and 140 °C at 20 °C/min, and maintaining the samples at the selected temperature until crystallization was completed. The crystallization data were used to determine the crystallization behavior and half-time of crystallization.
Tensile tests were performed at room temperature using an Instron 5582 universal testing machine according to ISO 527-2. Dog-bone specimens were prepared from compression-molded sheets and tested at a cross-head speed of 5 mm/min. The deposited tensile dataset contains numerical stress–strain data, including tensile stress, extension, engineering strain, and strain percentage.
The experimental conditions above correspond to the methods reported in the associated article, including the ARES LS2/EVF extensional measurements, DSC protocol and tensile testing.
(2026-09)
