Enhancement of mechanical and thermal properties of polylactic acid/polycaprolactone blends by hydrophilic nanoclay.

The effects of hydrophilic nanoclay, Nanomer PGV, on mechanical properties of Polylactic Acid (PLA)/Polycaprolactone (PCL) blends were investigated and compared with hydrophobic clay, Montmorillonite K10. The PLA/PCL/clay composites were prepared by melt intercalation technique and the composites were characterized by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). FTIR spectra indicated that formation of hydrogen bond between hydrophilic clay with the matrix. XRD results show that shifting of basal spacing when clay incorporated into polymer matrix. TEM micrographs reveal the formation of agglomerate in the composites. Based on mechanical properties results, addition of clay Nanomer PGV significantly enhances the flexibility of PLA/PCL blends about 136.26%. TGA showed that the presence of clay improve thermal stability of blends. DMA show the addition of clay increase storage modulus and the presence of clay Nanomer PGV slightly shift two of blends become closer suggest that the presence of clay slightly compatibilizer the PLA/PCL blends. SEM micrographs revealed that presence of Nanomer PGV in blends influence the miscibility of the blends. The PLA/PCL blends become more homogeneous and consist of single phase morphology

Compositional and morphological changes of chemical modified oil palm mesocarp fiber by alkaline bleaching and silane coupling agents

In this study, the effects of chemical modifications of oil palm mesocarp fiber (OPMF) via bleaching, silane coupling agents, and combinations of the two on the composition and morphology of OPMF were investigated. The chemically modified OPMF was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The FTIR spectra showed that bleached OPMF became more hydrophilic, while silanized unbleached and silanized bleached OPMF became less hydrophilic. The TGA thermograms indicated that bleaching successfully removed hemicellulose from the OPMF, while TGA analysis showed that silanized unbleached and silanized bleached OPMF had higher thermal stabilities than unbleached or bleached OPMF. The SEM micrographs revealed that the modified OPMF surface was rougher and more porous than that of the unbleached OPMF, further indicating that OPMF was successfully modified

Enhancement of tensile properties of surface treated oil palm mesocarp fiber/poly(butylene succinate) biocomposite by (3-aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane

The issue related to relatively poor interfacial adhesion between hydrophilic natural fiber and hydrophobic thermoplastic remain as an obstacle in natural fiber/thermoplastic biocomposites. Consequently, surface treatment of fiber is of important to impart adhesion. The present work used consecutive superheated steam-alkali treatment to treat the oil palm mesocarp fiber (OPMF) prior to biocomposite fabrication. The biocomposites made up of 70 wt% treated OPMF and 30 wt% poly (butylene succinate) (PBS) were prepared by melt blending technique in a Brabender internal mixer followed by hot-press moulding into 1 mm sheets. A silane coupling agent of (3-aminopropyl) trimethoxysilane (APTMS) was also added to the biocomposite during the process of compounding to promote interfacial adhesion and enhance the properties of biocomposites. The results showed that the biocomposite containing 2 wt% APTMS showed maximum enhancement in tensile strength (89%), tensile modulus (812%) and elongation at break (52%) in comparison to that of untreated OPMF/PBS biocomposite. The SEM observation of the tensile fracture surface revealed that APTMS improved the interfacial adhesion between treated OPMF and PBS. It can be deduced that the presence of APTMS can improve the adhesion between hydrophilic fiber and hydrophobic thermoplastic, and thus increased the tensile properties of the biocomposite

Enhancement of mechanical and dynamic mechanical properties of hydrophilic nanoclay reinforced polylactic acid/polycaprolactone/oil palm mesocarp fiber hybrid composites

In previous studies, the effect of the addition of 1 wt% hydrophilic nanoclay on polylactic acid (PLA)/polycaprolactone (PCL)/oil palm mesocarp fiber (OPMF) biocomposites was investigated by tensile properties, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The current studies focus on the effect of addition of 1 wt% hydrophilic nanoclay on mechanical (flexural and impact properties) and dynamic mechanical properties of composites. The composites were characterized by the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). FTIR spectra show that peak shifting occurs when 1 wt% hydrophilic nanoclay was added to composites. The addition of 1 wt% hydrophilic nanoclay successfully improves the flexural properties and impact resistance of the biocomposites. The storage modulus of biocomposites was decreased when nanoclay was added which indicates that the stiffness of biocomposites was reduced. The loss modulus curve shows that the addition of nanoclay shift two tg in composites become closer to each other which indicates that the incorporation of nanoclay slightly compatibilizes the biocomposites. Tan δ indicated that hybrid composites dissipate less energy compared to biocomposites indicate that addition of clay to biocomposites improves fiber/matrix adhesion. Water sorption test shows that the addition of nanoclay enhances water resistance of composites

Preparation and characterization of polylactic acid/ poly (ԑ-caprolactone) /clay/ oil palm mesocarp fiber hybrid composite

The research focused on incorporation of Oil Palm Mesocarp Fiber (OPMF) as filler in polylactic acid/poly(ε-caprolactone) (PLA/PCL) blends. The addition of clay as compatibilizer to improve mechanical and thermal properties of the composites. OPMF was bleached and then treated with silane coupling agent due to incompatibility of hydrophilic OPMF with hydrophobic matrix. PLA/PCL blends were prepared by melt blending technique with the best ratio is 85/15. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) revealed that there is physical interaction between PLA and PCL in blends. Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) showed that degradation of blends is two steps. Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) showed that blends exhibit two glass transition temperature (Tg) which indicated PLA/PCL is immiscible. The PLA/PCL/clay composites were prepared by melt intercalation technique. X-ray diffraction (XRD) showed shifting of diffraction peak while transmission electron microscopy (TEM) indicated formation of agglomerate when clay was added. The addition of clay Nanomer® PGV makes blends become more flexible while addition of clay Montmorillonite K10 makes blends become stiffer. TGA thermograms proved that the presence of clay improve thermal stability of blends. Loss modulus shows that the addition of clay shifts two Tg in composites become closer to each other. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrograph revealed that clay Nanomer® PGV composites is more homogeneous and appear as single phase morphology. The effect of 1% clay Nanomer® PGV on PLA/PCL/OPMF biocomposites was investigated. FTIR spectra showed that there is physical interaction between PLA, PCL, clay and OPMF in composites as peak shifting is observed. The addition of clay improves mechanical properties of biocomposites. TGA thermograms revealed that the addition of clay improves the thermal stability of the biocomposites. Loss modulus shows that the addition of clay shifts two Tg in composites become closer to each other and low tan δ indicate better fiber/matrix adhesion. SEM micrograph showed the addition of clay improves fiber/matrix adhesion as fiber breakage on the fracture surface. FTIR spectra showed that bleaching of OPMF successfully removes hemicellulose from fibers while silanized unbleached and silanized bleached OPMF are less hydrophilic. Silanized bleached OPMF composites showed best mechanical properties in PLA/PCL/clay/OPMF hybrid composites. FTIR spectra indicated there is interaction between both silane treated OPMF with matrix. DMA showed that both silane treated OPMF shift two Tg in composites become closer while low tan δ peak show good fiber/matrix adhesion of bleached silane treated OPMF composites. SEM micrograph indicated that better adhesion between silanized bleached fiber with matrix as fiber breakage in the fracture surface. Water sorption test showed that silanized bleached OPMF is most water resistance with less water uptake

Impact strength and flexural properties enhancement of methacrylate silane treated oil palm mesocarp fiber reinforced biodegradable hybrid composites

Natural fiber as reinforcement filler in polymer composites is an attractive approach due to being fully biodegradable and cheap. However, incompatibility between hydrophilic natural fiber and hydrophobic polymer matrix restricts the application. The current studies focus on the effects of incorporation of silane treated OPMF into polylactic acid (PLA)/polycaprolactone (PCL)/nanoclay/OPMF hybrid composites. The composites were prepared by melt blending technique and characterize the composites with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). FTIR spectra indicated that peak shifting occurs when silane treated OPMF was incorporated into hybrid composites. Based on mechanical properties results, incorporation of silane treated OPMF enhances the mechanical properties of unmodified OPMF hybrid composites with the enhancement of flexural and impact strength being 17.60% and 48.43%, respectively, at 10% fiber loading. TGA thermogram shows that incorporation of silane treated OPMF did not show increment in thermal properties of hybrid composites. SEM micrographs revealed that silane treated OPMF hybrid composites show good fiber/matrix adhesion as fiber is still embedded in the matrix and no cavity is present on the surface. Water absorption test shows that addition of less hydrophilic silane treated OPMF successfully reduces the water uptake of hybrid composites

Chemical Modification of Oil Palm Mesocarp Fiber by Methacrylate Silane: Effects on Morphology, Mechanical, and Dynamic Mechanical Properties of Biodegradable Hybrid Composites

Effects of modifying oil palm mesocarp fibers (OPMF) by methacrylate silane on polylactic acid (PLA)/ polycaprolactone (PCL)/clay/OPMF hybrid composites were investigated. The composites were prepared by a melt blending technique and characterized by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The silane-treated OPMF hybrid composites showed better tensile strength, tensile modulus, and elongation at break than unmodified OPMF hybrid composites. DMA analysis showed an increase in storage modulus when silane-treated OPMF was added to a hybrid composite. The loss modulus curve showed that the incorporation of silane-treated OPMF into a hybrid composite shifted the two glass transition temperatures (Tg) of composites closer to each other. The low tan δ peak indicated good fiber/matrix adhesion for the silane-treated OPMF hybrid composites. SEM micrographs revealed that silane-treated OPMF hybrid composites showed better fiber/matrix adhesion than unmodified OPMF hybrid composites because of absence of gap between silane-treated OPMF and the matrix in the composite

Compositional and Morphological Changes of Chemical Modified Oil Palm Mesocarp Fiber by Alkaline Bleaching and Silane Coupling Agents

In this study, the effects of chemical modifications of oil palm mesocarp fiber (OPMF) via bleaching, silane coupling agents, and combinations of the two on the composition and morphology of OPMF were investigated. The chemically modified OPMF was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The FTIR spectra showed that bleached OPMF became more hydrophilic, while silanized unbleached and silanized bleached OPMF became less hydrophilic. The TGA thermograms indicated that bleaching successfully removed hemicellulose from the OPMF, while TGA analysis showed that silanized unbleached and silanized bleached OPMF had higher thermal stabilities than unbleached or bleached OPMF. The SEM micrographs revealed that the modified OPMF surface was rougher and more porous than that of the unbleached OPMF, further indicating that OPMF was successfully modified