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Synthesis and characterization of wood flour modified by graphene oxide for reinforcement applications

  • Ammar Boudjellal EMAIL logo , Djalal Trache EMAIL logo , Kamel Khimeche , Said Lotfi Hafsaoui , Slimane Bekhouche and Djamil Guettiche
Published/Copyright: February 25, 2022
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International Polymer Processing
From the journal International Polymer Processing Volume 37 Issue 1

Abstract

The performance of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) reinforced with natural fibers can be tailored through a suitable choice of the fibers nature or the type of surface treatment applied to them. The present work deals with the improvement of the interfacial properties of natural fibers, namely wood flour (WF) by the introduction of graphene oxide (GO), which may easily disperse on the WF surface to provide hybrid fibers (WF-GO). The latter were then used as reinforcement of a TPU matrix at different ratios of 1, 3 and 5 wt%. The different samples were characterized by FTIR and RAMAN spectroscopies, XRD, SEM and TGA to confirm the structure, morphology and the thermal stability of the prepared hybrid fibers as well as their composites (TPU/WF-GO). SEM micrographs revealed that the surface treatment applied to WF, the distribution of GO sheets on the fiber interface, and the dispersion of (WF-GO) on the polymer matrix were successfully carried out. The thermal stability of the TPU-base composites increased with the increase of WF-GO content from 325 °C for the pure TPU matrix to 343 °C for the composite reinforced by 5% of (WF-GO). In addition, the results confirmed that the incorporation of GO into WF led to a significant improvement in the mechanical properties of the TPU-based composites, with an improvement in strength from 10.9 MPa to 19 MPa.

Keywords: composites; graphene oxide; natural fibers; polyurethane; reinforcement; wood flour
Corresponding authors: Ammar Boudjellal, Process Engineering Laboratory, UERPE, Polytechnic Military School, Bordj El Bahri, Algeria, E-mail: ; and Djalal Trache, Energetic Materials Laboratory, UERPE, Polytechnic Military School, Bordj El Bahri, Algeria, E-mail:

  1. Author contributions: All the authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this submitted manuscript and approved submission.

  2. Research funding: None declared.

  3. Conflict of interest statement: The authors declare no conflicts of interest regarding this article.

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Received: 2021-06-23
Accepted: 2021-09-12
Published Online: 2022-02-25
Published in Print: 2022-03-28

© 2021 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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https://doi.org/10.1515/ipp-2021-4148
Keywords for this article
composites; graphene oxide; natural fibers; polyurethane; reinforcement; wood flour

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Research Articles
  3. Process parameter optimization for Fused Filament Fabrication additive manufacturing of PLA/PHA biodegradable polymer blend
  4. Preparation and application of carbon black-filled rubber composite modified with a multi-functional silane coupling agent
  5. Non-isothermal viscoelastic melt spinning with stress-induced crystallization: numerical simulation and parametric analysis
  6. Effect of the amount of oxazoline compatibilizer on the mechanical properties of liquid crystalline polymer/polypropylene blends
  7. Tensile, rheological and morphological characterizations of multi-walled carbon nanotube/polypropylene composites prepared by microinjection and compression molding
  8. Modification of self-reinforced composites (SRCs) via film stacking process
  9. Study of distributive mixing in a journal bearing flow geometry
  10. Synthesis and characterization of wood flour modified by graphene oxide for reinforcement applications
  11. Antifouling improvement of a polyacrylonitrile membrane blended with an amphiphilic copolymer
  12. Exploring the applicability of a simplified fully coupled flow/orientation algorithm developed for polymer composites extrusion deposition additive manufacturing
  13. Understanding softening of amorphous materials for FFF applications
  14. News
  15. PPS News
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