Rheological Behavior of High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Filled with Corn Stalk Biochar

Abstract

Corn stalk (CS) was used as raw material to prepare biochar. Corn stalk biochar /HDPE composite (CSB/HDPE) was prepared by extrusion method with 3 wt% MA added. The effect of corn stalk biochar (CSB) on the rheological properties of HDPE under different conditions was studied. The interface performance of each component with HDPE was studied by using the Harmonic‐Mean interface equation. The purpose is to provide guidance for the processing and molding of materials by studying the rheological properties and interface properties of the materials. The results showed that, compared with CS, the interfacial tension between CSB and HDPE was lower; Research on dynamic rheological properties showed that an appropriate amount of CSB can improve the processing performance of HDPE; With the increase of CSB content, the stability of the composite system decreased, but the elasticity and viscosity increased correspondingly. The steady‐state rheological properties showed that shear induced compatibility occurs in the composite system at high shear rates; Compared with HDPE, 50 %CSB/HDPE was more sensitive to temperature and had higher viscous flow activation energy. In addition, the tensile strength and flexural strength of the composite material reached the maximum when the CSB content was 50 %, which were 28.69 MPa and 30.14 MPa, respectively. Overall, the study of rheological properties of materials provides guidance for the application of CSB in polymers and broadens the way of waste resources utilization.