Preparation and characterization of sago starch-cellulose reinforced polylactic acid hybrid biocomposite

Muhammad, Jayyad (2017) Preparation and characterization of sago starch-cellulose reinforced polylactic acid hybrid biocomposite. [Final Year Project Report] (Unpublished)

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Abstract

Plastics are one of the most heavily used materials that are used in everyday life and have numerous applications. The majority of plastics are petroleum-based which poses a problem in their disposal due to the fact that they are non-biodegradable. A new type of material that has shown great promise as an alternative is bioplastics (also called biopolymers or biocomposites). Biocomposites are based on renewable sources, biodegradable and exhibit superior mechanical, morphological and chemical properties. They also have vast applications including packaging and biomedical applications. Polylactic Acid (PLA) is one of the leading biopolymer that is used in biocomposites as matrix phase whereas sago starch and cellulose are among the most promising biopolymers to be used as the filler/reinforcement phase. This research attempted to synthesize and characterize a hybrid biocomposite by using PLA as the matrix phase and the sago starch and cellulose as the filler phase. Furthermore, the characterization of the hybrid biocomposite was done by carrying out the Tensile Testing, FTIR Analysis, SEM Analysis, DSC Analysis, TGA Analysis and Water Absorption Test. The mechanical, thermal, morphological and structural properties as well as water absorption resistance of the hybrid biocomposite have been tested and analyzed for four different sago starch-cellulose hybrid filler loads including 10wt%, 20wt%, 30wt% and 35wt% both with and without chemical modifications. The optimum hybrid filler loading for yielding the best tensile, morphological, structural and thermal properties and moisture absorption resistance of the hybrid biocomposite was found to be 35wt% sago starch-cellulose loading. The chemical modification using 1,2-Epoxy-5-Hexene of the sago starch-cellulose hybrid biofillers into the PLA matrix significantly improved the hybrid biocomposite and were strongly considered to be potentially utilized in a variety of applications including biomedical applications, tissue engineering, food packaging applications, used as plastic bags and disposable cutlery as well as in making baby nappies.

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