Promoting Recycling of Mixed Waste Polymers in Wood-Polymer Composites Using Compatibilizers

Abstract

Millions of tons of plastics are produced and consumed annually and should be recycled in a sustainable way. The effects of different compatibilizers on the properties of wood-mixed waste polymer composites are studied to promote recycling of plastics and to determine the potential of using waste plastics in composites. The effect of different addition levels and blending of compatibilizers is examined as well. The studied properties are microstructure, tensile and flexural properties, impact strength, and water absorption and thickness swelling in immersion. The results show that the addition of the selected compatibilizers improved the properties of wood-mixed waste polymer composites remarkably—all the studied mechanical properties and moisture resistance were improved by 50% or more. The effects depend strongly on the level of addition and the compatibilizer used. Findings show that compatibilization provides a feasible means to recycle waste plastics as feedstock for wood–plastic composites.

The Impact of Primary Sludge on the Physical Features of High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Composites

“…The large deviation in the WA and TS results of the reference material is congruent with a previous study of similar materials [21]. Water absorption has been shown to act as an indicator for composite porosity [22], which was also found in this study.…”

Upgrading mixed plastic wastes to prepare wood plastic composites via solid mechanochemical method

“…6a-b. The similar result was also investigated by Martikka that highest tensile strength of wood-commingled waste plastic composites was only 11.8 MPa, with the addition of 7% compatibilizers (Martikka & Kärki, 2019). Slight high exural modulus was attributed to high WF loading.…”

Selected properties of mahogany wood flour filled polypropylene composites: The effect of maleic anhydride-grafted polypropylene (MAPP)

“…Polymers used are either in virgin or recycled form. Currently, the main applications of WPC products are cladding, decking, fencing, paneling, and furniture (Çetin et al 2014;Özmen et al 2014;Çavuş and Mengeloğlu 2016;Martikka and Karki 2019;Mengeloğlu and Çavuş 2019). Good adhesion of matrix with WF improves the mechanical properties of WPCs.…”