Publication: Development of biodegradable polybutylene adipate terephthalate/ polybutylene succinate polymer composite incorporated with modified rice husk and starch
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Date
2021-12-01
Authors
Yap, Saw Yin
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Abstract
The present work deals with the fabrication and characterization of biodegradable polymer with 30%-40% rice husk waste filler and a 70%-60% of Polybutylene succinate (PBS) and Poly butylenes/ adipate terephthalate (PBAT) to achieve a balance within the mechanical properties, biodegradation percentage and costing. The rice husk was successfully modified with different amounts of glycerol to ease the composite fabrication process. The results reveal that the rice husk: glycerol ratio at 100: 10 obtained the optimum mechanical properties (tensile strength: 16.35MPa, Young’s modulus: 279.61MPa, elongation: 41.2%, water absorption capacity (3.98%) and water contact angle (113.9°). PBAT composites exhibited comparable tensile strength, lower Young’s modulus but higher elongation at break as compared to PBS composites due to intrinsic properties of the polymer.
FTIR analysis revealed no significant difference between modified rice husk (MRH) composites and modified starch (MS) composites because rice husk and starch are organic-based fillers having similar functional groups. The use of 40% high filler content for PBAT composite fabrication with and without compatibilizer was investigated. The tensile properties of compatibilized composites showed significant improvement due to good fibers-matrix adhesion. Optimization of the ratio PBAT: PBS to 36:24 expedited the biodegradation rate of the samples. PBAT: PBS blends with a 36:24 ratio showed 97.06% mass loss for MS and 92% for MRH, evidencing itself as a biodegradable material. A comparable amount of PBAT and PBS allowed the formation of co-continuously phases to improve the mechanical properties. The bio-composite Mg-36PBAT/24PBS/MRH10-40F possessed good mechanical
properties such as tensile strength (14.27MPa), Young’s modulus (200.43MPa) and elongation at break (12.99%), which is adequate for the manufacturing of molded products such as a tray, lunch box, and straw.