Biocomposites of Wood Flour and Polylactic Acid: Processing and Properties

摘要

In this work, the effect of maple wood flour content (15, 25, and 40 wt%) on the mechanical, physical, and morphological properties of reinforced polylactic acid (PLA) composites was studied. In particular, flexural and impact strengths were evaluated as mechanical properties, while other characterizations included density, hardness, dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were measured to better investigate the characteristics of these bio-composites. The results showed that wood flour addition substantially increased the flexural properties and impact strength of bio-composites. The results revealed that at 40 wt% wood flour, flexural properties and impact strength increased to a maximum of 5.9 GPa and 26.2 J/m, respectively. Thermal properties of PLA composites were also affected by wood flour addition. Glass transition, crystallization and melting temperatures decreased to minimum values of 55.3, 94.1, and 164.8 degrees C. It was also found that without the use of any coupling agent or wood surface treatment, good adhesion between wood flour and PLA was possible due to their polar nature.