The utilization of cellulose as reinforcement in polymer composites have received tremendous interest during the past few decades. This was motivated by regulations and the increase of public’s awareness which led to the demand of environmentally friendlier products in various applications. In the automotive industries especially, cellulose is an attractive material to manufacture green lightweight parts. It is highly abundant and cheap in comparison to other types of reinforcing materials such as carbon fiber. In terms of its mechanical properties, cellulose has high specific modulus; up to 128 GPa for cellulose originating from natural plant fiber. Further fibrillation of cellulose to its nanoscale form (10-20 nm) would produce fibre with even higher specific surface area and superior mechanical properties. Nanocellulose is therefore favoured to produce composites with great performance. However, the isolation of highly individualized nanocellulose from their plant celluloses requires a high energy consumption and must be done separately prior to composites production.<br/><br/>In this study, we report the mechanical and thermal properties of polypropylene (PP) reinforced with (i) TEMPO oxidized pulp and (ii) nanofibrillated cellulose. PP composites containing 5 wt.% of the cellulose reinforcements were compounded using a twin-screw extruder and fabricated into test specimens using an injection moulder. Results showed that the tensile modulus and fracture toughness of PP reinforced with TEMPO oxidized pulp were higher (18 % and 17 %, respectively) than those reinforced with nanofibrillated cellulose. In addition, the onset degradation temperature of PP reinforced with TEMPO oxidized pulp was also 11 degree Celsius higher. TEMPO oxidation promotes good dispersion of pulp in PP, however further nanofibrillation of the cellulose resulted in agglomeration and thermal degradation during melt-processing of composites. This was further supported by the dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and the fracture surfaces morphology of the composites.

TEMPO oxidized cellulose-reinforced composites: Pulp or nanofibrillated-cellulose?

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.