Physical properties of LLDPE and PP filled with wood flours

Abstract

In this study, composites of polypropylene (PP), as well as linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) thermoplastics filled with wood flour have been investigated to study the effect of size and amount of wood flour on their mechanical, thermal and aging properties. PP and LLDPE were mixed with five different types of wood flour, i.e., cedar, maple, oak, poplar, and select pine, by adding different percentages of wood flour at 30, 40 and 50 weight percentages. Mixing was done using a mini compounder at 180-210ºC and dog-bone shape samples were produced by using a mini-injection molding machine. Two different sizes of wood flour labeled as thin (425 – 500 µm) and thick (600 – 710 µm) were compared for PP-wood and LLDPE-wood composites. Mechanical properties of blends were investigated by tensile testing and thermal behaviors of blends were characterized by using DSC analyses. Poplar and maple show better tensile results among other wood types with 543.7 MPa and 600.5 MPa Young’s modulus and 21.05 MPa and 24.53 MPa tensile strength for LLDPE when comparing thick and thin wood flour blends, respectively. In the case of PP; poplar and select pine gave higher Young’s modulus and tensile strength results. Samples were also aged in acid and water solution for 3 days, and their weight and dimensional changes were recorded and compared with neat polymer samples to show physical stability