The Effect of Fiber Bleaching Treatment on the Properties of Poly(lactic acid)/Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch Fiber Composites

Abstract

In this work, biodegradable composites from poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) fiber were prepared by melt blending method. Prior to mixing, the fiber was modified through bleaching treatment using hydrogen peroxide. Bleached fiber composite showed an improvement in mechanical properties as compared to untreated fiber composite due to the enhanced fiber/matrix interfacial adhesion. Interestingly, fiber bleaching treatment also improved the physical appearance of the composite. The study was extended by blending the composites with commercially available masterbatch colorant.

Tea Tree (Melaleuca alternifolia) Fiber as Novel Reinforcement Material for Sugar Palm Biopolymer Based Composite Films

“…On the other hand, the valley shaped region between the two major peaks signifies the non-crystalline region of TTF, which represents the amorphous materials in cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin and other non-cellulose materials. Similar peaks were reported for raw sisal fibers and oil palm empty fruit bunch by Kaushik et al (2012) and Rayung et al (2014), respectively. The crystallinity index of TTF is calculated to be 43%.…”

Preparation and Characterization of Poly(lactic Acid)-based Composite Reinforced with Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch Fiber and Nanosilica

“…Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) reinforced with kenaf (Huda et al 2008), bamboo (Kang and Kim 2011), banana (Shih and Huang 2011), ramie (Yu et al 2010), oil palm (Rayung et al 2014), and other natural fibers have been studied. However, the use of these natural fibers have several drawbacks, such as incompatibility with hydrophobic polymer matrices, poor resistance to moisture, low degradation temperatures, and a higher tendency towards agglomeration during processing (Rayung et al 2014;Tan et al 2015). Therefore, fillers such as silica, aluminium, and zinc oxide have been further introduced into polymer composites to enhance their performance.…”

Influence of Fiber Content on Properties of Oil Palm Mesocarp Fiber/Poly(butylene succinate) Biocomposites

“…According to recent publications, a wide range of natural fibers are being utilized as filler or reinforcement in various types of thermoplastic matrices to fabricate biocomposites; these include oil palm (Shinoj et al 2010(Shinoj et al , 2011aTeh et al 2013;Eng et al 2014;Rayung et al 2014;Then et al 2013Then et al , 2014aThen et al , 2015a, kenaf (Abdul , hemp (Terzopoulou et al 2014), jute (Nam et al 2012), coir (Nam et al 2011), cotton stalk (Tan et al 2011), sisal (Joseph et al 2003), and banana (Pothan et al 2003).…”