Research article

Examination of water uptake performance and mechanical properties of PLA/flax fiber biocomposites with the coupling agent

  • Ali Avci 1
  • Aysegul Akdogan Eker 2
  • Mustafa Bakkal 3
  • Mehmet Safa Bodur 4
  • 1 Hakkari University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hakkari, Türkiye
  • 2 Yildiz Technical University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 3 Istanbul Technical University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 4 Yeditepe University, Department of Materials Science and Nanotechnology Engineering, Istanbul, Türkiye
https://doi.org/10.53063/synsint.2022.22102

Abstract

This paper studies the effects of water sorption on the microstructural and flexural properties of the flax fiber/polylactic acid (PLA) biocomposites, compared to the composites with maleic anhydride (MAH) as coupling agents and alkali treatment. Five different biocomposites were prepared: 15 wt% and 25 wt% flax/PLA as the control group, and 15 wt%, 25 wt%, and 35 wt% flax/PLA with 5 wt% MAH. Ten various soaking times were selected to understand the water absorption behavior of the biocomposites. To investigate the mechanical properties of the biocomposites, impact tests were applied on the dry sample as well as the composites with 750-h and 1850-h water sorption. A three-point bending test was performed on the dry and 1850-h water sorption biocomposites to determine their flexural strength. Short flax fiber-reinforced PLA matrix biocomposites were compounded using extrusion and manufactured by injection molding. The flax fiber surface was treated using sodium hydroxy solution to advance the interface interaction between the fiber matrix and surface performance of the fiber and matrix. According to the results, alkali treatment improved the water gain resistance of the composites due to the enhancement of the interfacial bonding. The alkali-treated composites with maleic anhydride showed better impact and flexural strength than the composites without alkali-treated after 1850-h water sorption.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.
Keywords: Biocomposites, Water uptake, Flexural performance

References

[1] M.S. Bodur, K. Englund, M. Bakkal, Water absorption behavior and kinetics of glass fiber/waste cotton fabric hybrid composites, J. Appl. Polym. 134 (2017) 45506. https://doi.org/10.1002/app.45506.
[2] R.H. Newman, Auto-accelerative water damage in an epoxy composite reinforced with plain-weave flax fabric, Compos. - A: Appl. Sci. Manuf. 40 (2009) 1615–20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2009.07.010.
[3] E. Muñoz, J.A. García-Manrique, Water absorption behaviour and its effect on the mechanical properties of flax fibre reinforced bioepoxy composites, Int. J. Polym. Sci. 2015 (2015) 390275. https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/390275.
[4] A. Chilali, W. Zouari, M. Assarar, H. Kebir, R. Ayad, Effect of water ageing on the load-unload cyclic behaviour of flax fibre-reinforced thermoplastic and thermosetting composites, J. Compos. Struct.183 (2018) 309–319. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compstruct.2017.03.077.
[5] A. Arbelaiz, B. Fernández, J.A. Ramos, A. Retegi, R. Llano-Ponte, I.Mondragon, Mechanical properties of short flax fibre bundle/polypropylene composites: Influence of matrix/fibre modification, fibre content, water uptake and recycling, Compos. Sci. Technol. 65 (2005) 1582–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compscitech.2005.01.008.
[6] N.F. Ismail, N.A. Mohd Radzuan, A.B. Sulong, N. Muhamad, C.H. Che Haron, The Effect of Alkali Treatment on Physical, Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Kenaf Fiber and Polymer Epoxy Composites, Polymers. 13 (2021) 2005. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13122005.
[7] T. Yu, N. Jiang, Y. Li, Study on short ramie fiber/poly(lactic acid) composites compatibilized by maleic anhydride, Compos. - A: Appl. Sci. Manuf. 64 (2014) 139–146. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2014.05.008.
[8] C.K. Hong, N. Kim, S.L. Kang, C. Nah, Y.-S. Lee, et al., Mechanical properties of maleic anhydride treated jute fibre/polypropyiene composites, Plast. Rubber. Compos. 37 (2008) 325–330. https://doi.org/10.1179/174328908X314334.
[9] A. Espert, F. Vilaplana, S. Karlsson, Comparison of water absorption in natural cellulosic fibres from wood and one-year crops in polypropylene composites and its influence on their mechanical properties, Compos. - A: Appl. Sci. Manuf. 35 (2004) 1267–1276. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2004.04.004.
[10] M. Abdelmouleh, S. Boufi, M.N. Belgacem, A. Dufresne, A. Gandini, Modification of cellulose fibers with functionalized silanes: Effect of the fiber treatment on the mechanical performances of cellulose-thermoset composites, J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 98 (2005) 974–984. https://doi.org/10.1002/app.22133.
[11] M. Soleimani, L. Tabil, S. Panigrahi, A. Opoku, The effect of fiber pretreatment and compatibilizer on mechanical and physical properties of flax fiber-polypropylene composites, J. Polym. Environ. 16 (2008) 74–82. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10924-008-0102-y.
[12] J. Zhu, J. Brington, H. Zhu, H. Abhyankar, Effect of alkali, esterification and silane surface treatments on properties of flax fibres, J. Sci. Res. Rep. 4 (2015) 1–11. https://doi.org/10.9734/jsrr/2015/12347.
[13] A. Le Duigou, A. Bourmaud, P. Davies, C. Baley, Long term immersion in natural seawater of Flax/PLA biocomposite, Ocean Eng. 90 (2014) 140–148. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2014.07.021.
[14] E. Nassiopoulos, J. Njuguna, Thermo-mechanical performance of poly(lactic acid)/flax fibre-reinforced biocomposites, Mater. Des. 66 (2015) 473–485. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2014.07.051.
[15] P. Georgiopoulos, E. Kontou, G. Georgousis, Effect of silane treatment loading on the flexural properties of PLA/flax unidirectional composites, Compos. Commun. 10 (2018) 6–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coco.2018.05.002.
[16] A. Moudood, A. Rahman, A. Öchsner, M. Islam, G. Francucci, Flax fiber and its composites: An overview of water and moisture absorption impact on their performance, J. Reinf. Plast. Compos. 38 (2019) 323–339. https://doi.org/10.1177/0731684418818893.
[17] N. Dehouche, M. Kaci, C. Idres, S. Bruzaud, Filler content effect on water uptake and thermal stability of Poly(3-Hydroxybutyrate-Co-3-Hydroxyhexanoate)/microcrystalline cellulose biocomposites, Macromol. Symp. 396 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1002/MASY.202000233.
[18] S. Pivsa-Art, W. Pivsa-Art, Eco-friendly bamboo fiber-reinforced poly(butylene succinate) biocomposites, Polym. Compos. 42 (2021) 1752–1759. https://doi.org/10.1002/PC.25930.
[19] N.H.I. Kamaludin, H. Ismail, A. Rusli, S.S. Ting, Thermal behavior and water absorption kinetics of polylactic acid/ chitosan biocomposites, J. Iranian Poly. 30 (2021) 135–147. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13726-020-00879-5.
[20] M. Gallardo-Cervantes, Y. González-García, A. Alejandra Pérez-Fonseca, M.E. González-López, R. Manríquez-González, et al., Biodegradability and improved mechanical performance of polyhydroxyalkanoates/agave fiber biocomposites compatibilized by different strategies, J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 138 (2021) 50182. https://doi.org/10.1002/app.50182.
[21] K. Malik, F. Ahmad, E. Gunister, T. Nakato, E. Mouri, et al., A Review of Flax Fiber Reinforced Thermoset Polymer Composites: Structure and Mechanical Performance, J. Nat. Fibers. (2021) 9656–9680. https://doi.org/10.1080/15440478.2021.1990182.
[22] S.K. Ling, A.K.H. Kwan, Filler technology for low-carbon high-dimensional stability concrete, Constr. Build. Mater. 163 (2018) 87–96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.12.083.
[23] A. Ling Pang, A.A. Bakar, Eco-friendly coupling agent-treated kenaf/linear low-density polyethylene/poly (vinyl alcohol) composites, Iran. Poly. J. 27 (2018) 87–96. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13726-017-0588-z.
[24] A. Avci, A. Akdogan Eker, M.S. Bodur, Effect of coupling agent and alkali treatment on mechanical, thermal and morphological properties of flax-fiber-reinforced PLA composites, Green Mater. 9 (2021) 131–44. https://doi.org/10.1680/jgrma.20.00062.
[25] B. Bax, J. Müssing, Impact and tensile properties of PLA/Cordenka and PLA/flax composites, Compos. Sci. Technol. 68 (2008) 1601–1607. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compscitech.2008.01.004.
[26] O.M.L. Asumani, R.G. Reid, R. Paskaramoorthy, The effects of alkali-silane treatment on the tensile and flexural properties of short fibre non-woven kenaf reinforced polypropylene composites, J. Compos. Sci. Technol. 43 (2012) 1431–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2012.04.007.
[27] F. Agrebi, M. Hammami, M. Asim, A. Kallel, Impact of silane treatment on the dielectric properties of pineapple leaf/kenaf fiber reinforced phenolic composites, J. Compos. Mater. 54 (2020) 937–946. https://doi.org/10.1177/0021998319871351.
Scopus
Europe PMC

Cited By

Crossref Google Scholar
Examination of water uptake performance and mechanical properties of PLA/flax fiber biocomposites with the coupling agent
Submitted
2022-01-22
Available online
2022-04-01
How to Cite
Avci, A., Akdogan Eker, A., Bakkal, M., & Bodur, M. S. (2022). Examination of water uptake performance and mechanical properties of PLA/flax fiber biocomposites with the coupling agent. Synthesis and Sintering, 2(2), 55-61. https://doi.org/10.53063/synsint.2022.22102
Issue
Vol. 2 No. 2 (2022)

Copyright (c) 2022 Ali Avci, Aysegul Akdogan Eker, Mustafa Bakkal, Mehmet Safa Bodur

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Copyright
Authors are the copyright holders of their published papers in Synthesis and Sintering, which are simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The full details of the license are available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

All papers published open access will be immediately and permanently free for everyone to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, link to the full-text of papers, crawl them for indexing, pass them as data to software, or use them for any other lawful purpose without any registration obstacles or subscription fees.