Polylactic acid (PLA)/banana fiber (BF) biodegradable green composites

In this study, polylactic acid (PLA)/banana fiber (BF) composites were prepared by melt blending method. The BF was conjugated onto PLA chains through the use of a coupling agent and chemical modification. Consequently, the thermal stability and mechanical properties of the PLA were dramatically elevated through the incorporation of BF. Mechanical tests showed that the tensile and flexural strengths of the composites markedly increased with the fiber content, reaching 78.6 and 65.4 MPa when reinforced with 40 phr fiber, approximately 2 and 1.66 times higher, produced by pristine PLA. However, the impact strengths of composites are somewhat decreased with the increased content of fibers. The addition of 40 phr BF into the composite increased the HDT of pure PLA from 62 °C to 139 °C; an improvement of about 122%. Apart from enhancing the mechanical properties and thermal stability, the incorporation of BF can reduce the production cost of materials while meeting the demands of environmental protection agencies.

[1]  Y. Shih.  Mechanical and thermal properties of waste water bamboo husk fiber reinforced epoxy composites , 2007 .

[2]  W. B. Pedersen,et al.  Biodegradable composites based on l-polylactide and jute fibres , 2003 .

[3]  M. Shibata,et al.  Biocomposites Made from Short Abaca Fiber and Biodegradable Polyesters , 2003 .

[4]  Kristiina Oksman,et al.  Morphology and mechanical properties of unidirectional sisal-epoxy composites , 2002 .

[5]  Po-Wei Chen,et al.  Biodegradable green composites reinforced by the fiber recycling from disposable chopsticks , 2010 .

[6]  Donald Garlotta,et al.  A Literature Review of Poly(Lactic Acid) , 2001 .

[7]  Manjusri Misra,et al.  Effect of process engineering on the performance of natural fiber reinforced cellulose acetate biocomposites , 2004 .

[8]  M. Rong,et al.  The effect of fiber treatment on the mechanical properties of unidirectional sisal-reinforced epoxy composites , 2001 .

[9]  M. Hartmann.  High Molecular Weight Polylactic Acid Polymers , 1998 .

[10]  C. Lakshmana Rao,et al.  Extraction of bamboo fibers and their use as reinforcement in polymeric composites , 2000 .

[11]  Sabu Thomas,et al.  Polarity parameters and dynamic mechanical behaviour of chemically modified banana fiber reinforced polyester composites , 2003 .

[12]  Ying‐Ling Liu,et al.  Maleimide-epoxy resins: preparation, thermal properties, and flame retardance , 2003 .

[13]  Kazunobu Yamada,et al.  Polylactide-Layered Silicate Nanocomposite: A Novel Biodegradable Material , 2002 .

[14]  C. Hill,et al.  Effect of fiber treatments on mechanical properties of coir or oil palm fiber reinforced polyester composites , 2000 .

[15]  M. Pluta.  Morphology and properties of polylactide modified by thermal treatment, filling with layered silicates and plasticization , 2004 .

[16]  E. Piorkowska,et al.  Composites of poly(L‐lactide) with hemp fibers: Morphology and thermal and mechanical properties , 2007 .

[17]  Kuo-Hsiung Wang,et al.  Water bamboo husk reinforced poly(lactic acid) green composites , 2008 .

[18]  Manjusri Misra,et al.  Effect of fiber surface-treatments on the properties of laminated biocomposites from poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and kenaf fibers , 2008 .

[19]  Chin-San Wu.  Improving polylactide/starch biocomposites by grafting polylactide with acrylic acid--characterization and biodegradability assessment. , 2005, Macromolecular bioscience.

[20]  E. Piorkowska,et al.  Crystallization, structure and properties of plasticized poly(l-lactide) , 2005 .

[21]  T. D. Fornes,et al.  Crystallization behavior of nylon 6 nanocomposites , 2003 .

[22]  Zachariah Oommen,et al.  Dynamic mechanical analysis of banana fiber reinforced polyester composites , 2003 .

[23]  R. Jeng,et al.  Carbon black containing IPNs based on unsaturated polyester/epoxy. I. Dynamic mechanical properties, thermal analysis, and morphology , 2002 .

[24]  Kin Liao,et al.  Effects of environmental aging on the mechanical properties of bamboo–glass fiber reinforced polymer matrix hybrid composites , 2002 .

[25]  M. Tavares,et al.  A solid state NMR carbon-13 high resolution study of natural fiber from sugar cane and their composites with EVA , 2000 .

[26]  J. Matisons,et al.  Siloxane Coupling Agents , 1995 .

[27]  S. Ray,et al.  New Polylactide/Layered Silicate Nanocomposite: Nanoscale Control Over Multiple Properties , 2002 .

[28]  Philippe Dubois,et al.  Polylactide/montmorillonite nanocomposites and microcomposites prepared by melt blending: Structure and some physical properties , 2002 .

[29]  R. Jeng,et al.  Water bamboo husk‐reinforced poly(butylene succinate) biodegradable composites , 2006 .

[30]  C. Baley.  Analysis of the flax fibres tensile behaviour and analysis of the tensile stiffness increase , 2002 .

[31]  Tzong‐Ming Wu,et al.  Biodegradable poly(lactic acid)/chitosan-modified montmorillonite nanocomposites: Preparation and characterization , 2006 .

[32]  S. Ray,et al.  New polylactide-layered silicate nanocomposites. 2. Concurrent improvements of material properties, biodegradability and melt rheology , 2003 .

[33]  Manjusri Misra,et al.  A Study on Biocomposites from Recycled Newspaper Fiber and Poly(lactic acid) , 2005 .

[34]  R. Jeng,et al.  Expandable graphite systems for phosphorus-containing unsaturated polyesters. I. Enhanced thermal properties and flame retardancy , 2004 .

[35]  E. Pearce,et al.  Public health implications of components of plastics manufacture. Flame retardants. , 1975, Environmental health perspectives.

[36]  Bo Zhu,et al.  Crystallization behavior and mechanical properties of bio‐based green composites based on poly(L‐lactide) and kenaf fiber , 2007 .

[37]  Dimitrios N. Bikiaris,et al.  Mechanical Properties and Viscoelastic Behavior of Basalt Fiber-Reinforced Polypropylene , 1999 .

[38]  R. Sinke,et al.  Natural fibre reinforced sheet moulding compound , 2001 .