The effect of filler content and chemical modification on properties of Polylactic acid/ Polymethyl Methacrylate/ Nypa Fruticans husk biocomposites

Abstract

The biocomposites of Nypa fruticans Husk (NFH) and poly (lactic acid) (PLA)/polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) were prepared using a twin-screw extruder. The biocomposites were extruded at 180 ºC to 250 ºC, feeder screw of 8 rpm and screw speed of 80 rpm. The effect of Nypa fruticans husk (NFH) content and chemical modification of NFH by silane coupling agent on tensile properties, morphology and enzymatic biodegradation of PLA/PMMA/NFH biocomposites were studied. The result obtained showed that the tensile strength and elongation at break decreased as NFH content in biocomposites increased. Meanwhile, Young’s modulus increased with increasing of NFH content. The SEM micrographs showed poor filler-matrix interaction between NFH and PLA/PMMA matrix. The total weight loss of biocomposites in enzymatic biodegradation increased with increasing of NFH content. The chemical modification of NFH by silane coupling agent (3-APE) improved the tensile strength and Young’s modulus but reduced elongation at break of treated biocomposites. The morphological studies proved that treated NFH has better dispersion in PLA/PMMA matrix. The changes of functional group of untreated and treated biocomposites were proven by the FTIR study. The enzymatic biodegradation of treated biocomposites showed lower total weight loss compared to untreated biocomposites.