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Recently, graphene has attracted both academic and industrial interest because it can produce a dramatic improvement in properties at very low filler content. This review will focus on the latest studies and recent progress in the swelling resistance of rubber compounds due to the addition of graphene and its derivatives. This work will present the state-of-the-art in this subject area and will highlight the advantages and current limitations of the use of graphene for potential future researches.

The lack of electrical conductivity on materials, which are used in automotive fuel systems, can lead to electrostatic charges buildup in the components of such systems. This accumulation of energy can reach levels that exceed their capacity to withstand voltage surges, which considerably increases the risk of electrical discharges or sparks. Another important factor to consider is the conductivity of the commercially available fuels, such as biodiesel, which contributes to dissipate these charges to a proper grounding point in automobiles. From 2013, the diesel regulation in Brazil have changed and the levels of sulfur in the composition of diesel were reduced considerably, changing its natural characteristic of promoting electrostatic discharges, becoming more insulating.

In recent years, a special attention has been given to the environment protection, as evidenced by an increased commitment of governments and industries for a better use of energy and for reducing the levels of vehicle emissions (CO2). The use of renewable and bio-based plastics in the automotive sector is being considered as alternative solution to the conventional petroleum-based polymeric materials. In the present work, biobased polymer blends were formulated using two polyamides made from biorenewable resources. Polyamide 10,10 (PA1010) and polyamide 6,10 (PA610) were melt mixed in different compositions and the mechanical properties of the blends were investigated by tensile evaluations. The mechanical properties of the blends show intermediate values compared to the pure polymers. Significant improvements on these properties could be observed with the incorporation of PA610 in the blends.