Morphology and properties of polystyrene/agave fiber composites and foams

Abstract

In this work, agave fibers were blended with polystyrene to produce foamed and unfoamed composites. The effect of fiber size and density reduction on the morphological, thermal, mechanical, and rheological properties, as well as crystallinity and water absorption kinetics of the composites was assessed. The results show that Young's modulus and tensile strength increased with increasing fiber content, but decreased with density reduction. Increasing fiber content and decreasing the size of the fibers both increased crystallinity of the composites. Finally, water uptake and diffusion coefficient were found to increase with increasing fiber content for all sizes.

Studies on Mechanical Performance of Wood-Plastic Composites: Polystyrene-Eucalyptus globulus Labill

“…When the concentration increases, the water diffusion coefficient also increases, most likely because of more contact between the particles in the composite. This is consistent with the results reported by Porebska et al (2015) for PS/cellulosic fiber composites, Moscoso et al (2013) for polystyrene/agave fiber composites, and Rao et al (1984) for jute/epoxy composite systems. Table 2 displays the MFI values for each studied composition at various loads.…”

“…This behavior is attributed to a low compatibility between the PS and the wood particles. These values are comparable to those reported by Moscoso et al (2013) for polystyrene/agave fibers composites. 19.1 ± 0.8 1.9 ± 0.11 1.03 ± 0.08 35.5 ± 1.6 1.1 ± 0.01 4.3 ± 0.21 1.05 ± 0.04 PS-Eu5010 21.3 ± 0.9 1.7 ± 0.12 1.19 ± 0.09 37.8 ± 1.7 1.4 ± 0.02 3.5 ± 0.15 0.62 ± 0.01 PS-Eu5030 20.6 ± 0.8 1.8 ± 0.09 1.18 ± 0.08 39.6 ± 1.5 1.4 ± 0.01 3.8 ± 0.19 0.83 ± 0.02 PS-Eu5050 20.0 ± 0.8 1.9 ± 0.13 1.11 ± 0.08 38.7 ± 1.4 1.2 ± 0.04 4.9 ± 0.23 1.14 ± 0.05 PS-Eu6510 22.7 ± 1.1 2.1 ± 0.09 1.10 ± 0.07 33.2 ± 1.1 1.9 ± 0.06 3.0 ± 0.18 0.75 ± 0.02 PS-Eu6530 22.2 ± 0.9 2.1 ± 0.08 1.08 ± 0.09 37.5 ± 1.4 1.4 ± 0.03 4.2 ± 0.19 0.86 ± 0.01 PS-Eu6550 21.3 ± 0.6 2.2 ± 0.11 1.24 ± 0.06 33.7 ± 1.3 1.2 ± 0.05 6.8 ± 0.27 1.24 ± 0.01 PS-Eu10010 26.2 ± 0.9 2.2 ± 0.17 1.17 ± 0.08 38.0 ± 1.8 1.9 ± 0.04 3.8 ± 0.14 0.86 ± 0.02 PS-Eu10030 25.3 ± 1.2 2.3 ± 0.14 1.31 ± 0.09 39.0 ± 1.5 1.6 ± 0.06 4.0 ± 0.16 0.96 ± 0.03 PS-Eu10050 24.6 ± 1.1 2.3 ± 0.09 1.32 ± 0.07 38.4 ± 1.7 1.1 ± 0.03 7.3 ± 0.23 1.44 ± 0.02…”

Preparation and characterization of multilayer foamed composite by rotational molding

“…The azodicarbonamide decomposition starts at around 1908C to end around 2408C where another slope change in the curve indicates a second reaction as reported by Reyes-Labarta and Marcilla [26]. The agave fibers have an initial mass loss of about 5% between 35 and 1008C because fiber dehydration, but the main mass loss occurs in the range 220-3908C due to thermal degradation of hemicelluloses and lignins which are the main components of the fibers [27,28]. In nitrogen atmosphere and in air atmosphere, the agave fiber is stable between 100 and 2208C.…”

Study of Fire Retardancy and Thermal and Mechanical Properties of HDPE-Wood Composites

“…Such composites are partially biodegradable, have the appearance of cellulosic material, and can show outstanding performance. [5] They are a very promising and sustainable green material with good durability. Compared with potential traditional competitors, WPCs sometimes offer better thermal and acoustic isolation than some other materials (for example, aluminum), as well as better durability and lower maintenance than wood.…”