Insights into the effect of moisture absorption and fiber content on the mechanical behavior of starch–date‐palm fiber composites

Abstract

Biodegradable composites of starch-date-palm fibers were prepared by first plasticizing corn starch and chemically treating the fibers before being formed by compression molding. The effect of fiber content on mechanical properties was examined and it was found that tensile strength and Young's modulus for 50 weight percent (wt%) fiber composite improved by 7 and 12.5 times, respectively, compared to thermoplastic starch. Impact strength showed similar behavior and improved by 4.3 times for 50 wt% fiber composites. At higher fiber content the matrix was insufficient to cover the fibers, causing the mechanical properties to deteriorate. The results also showed that exposure to moisture resulted in progressive decrease in mechanical properties with increasing moisture absorption. It was found that after reaching moisture saturation, the retained tensile strengths were about one-third the starting values and the retained impact strengths were about two-thirds the starting values.

Impact of water saturation on the tensile and thermal properties of heat-treated mangrove/high-density polyethylene composites

“…Continuous swelling over time will eventually lead to micro-cracks in the composites. 2 Even though, there are several articles that reported the research on water absorption of WPCs, [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] but with little emphasis on its effects on the tensile and thermal properties. Therefore, realizing its importance in the development of WPCs, this research focuses on studying the effect of water absorption on the tensile and thermal properties of wood fiber-reinforced polymer composite, using mangrove particle (MP) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) as matrix.…”

A Novel Approach for Fabrication of Thermoplastic Starch Based Biocomposites

“…In that case, TPS based composites draw attention because of their superior properties. In order to obtain desired morphological and mechanical properties, thermoplastic starch can be mixed with various fillers [1,[5][6][7]. If the biodegradability of the composite is considered; cellulose-based natural fibers become one of the first choices because of the chemical similarity to starch.…”

“…As known, starch is one of the most abundant natural polymers found on earth so, thermoplastic starch-based materials can be fabricated relatively cheap and easy when compared with traditional conventional thermoplastics. The main process, plasticization, can be carried out by different systems depending on the amount of the material [1][2][3][4]. However, the most common method used in the industry is the plasticization by an extruder.…”

“…As known, chemical similarity between filler and matrix is of significance in terms of obtaining a strong interface between cellulosic fiber and thermoplastic starch [5]. Although there are many studies in the literature related to natural fiber filled TPS composites [1,[5][6][7][8], number of the studies are very limited for jute fiber filled TPS composites. Jute fibers are cellulose-based bast fibers obtained from Corchorus olitorius plant and totally biodegradable, sustainable, strong materials.…”

Bioactive Starch Foam Composite Enriched With Natural Antioxidants from Spent Coffee Ground and Essential Oil

“…Recently, the replacement of petroleum based polymer by other environmentally friendly materials such a biodegradable polymers has attracted much attention. The waste from petroleum based polymer is non‐biodegradable and difficult to recycle . It normally requires more than 100 years for degradation with unintentionally generated toxic .…”