Development of Biocomposites from Cocoa Pod Husk and Polypropylene: Effect of Filler Content and 3-Aminopropyltriethoxylsilane

Abstract

Cocoa pod husk (CPH) is a waste material from cocoa industry. This work describes the development of biocomposites from polypropylene and cocoa pod husk. 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (3-APE) is used as coupling agent in filler treatment of CPH. The treated CPH with 3-APE had raised the stabilization torque of PP/CPH biocomposites. The results of tensile test and scanning electron microscope (SEM) indicated that 3-APE given coupling effect on PP/ CPH biocomposites. The presence of covalent bonds between CPH and 3-APE was confirmed by Fourier transmission infra-red (FTIR) analysis, while the improvement of thermal stability and crystallization were evidenced by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).

Agrowaste-based composites from cocoa pod husk and polypropylene

“…Thus, the flexibility of PP matrix was reduced by the stronger filler-matrix adhesion. Other researchers reported a similar influence of silane coupling agent 20 and SDS 22 on the elongation at break of PP/chitosan composites.…”

“…12,13 Thus, many researchers reported that the silane coupling agent does remarkably to improve the water resistivity and mechanical and thermal properties of composites. [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21] Moreover, some literatures reported that the use of fatty acid for filler treatment will also give a coupling effect to the composites. Fatty acid is made from sustainable resources, and it is inexpensive compared to commercial silane coupling agent.…”

Purification of Biodiesel Using Activated Carbon Produced from Cocoa Pod Husk

“…According to thermogravimetry results [20] the obtained weight losses during carbonization were 10.27%, 13.56 % and 17.64% at temperatures of 250, 300 and 400°C, respectively. The strong decrease in weight at 400°C corresponds to the decomposition of lignocellulose whereas at 250°C is attributed to the decomposition of hemicellulose [22]. Thermal degradation has taken place through heat supplied during the carbonization process [5].…”

Optimization of Microwave-Assisted Alkali Pretreatment for Enhancement of Delignification Process of Cocoa Pod Husk

“…Figure 6 illustrates the morphology and particle of cocoa before being delegated (depectination) and cocoa that has been delegated. Morphology shows that delignified cocoa has a smaller cavity compared to depectative Figure 2b, having a thicker and rougher surface to protect the lignocellulosic content contained in fiber [28]. The significant difference in the two samples lies in the particle size.…”