Fabrication of flax fibre-reinforced cellulose propionate thermoplastic composites

Journal article (2019)

Authors

Wilhelm Woigk University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland
A. Fuentes Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
J. Rion Bcomp Ltd.
D. Hegemann Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa)
Aart Willem Van Vuure Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
E. Kramer University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland
C.A. Dransfeld University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland
K. Masania University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland
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External organisation
Mechanical properties Cellulose propionate High toughness Natural fibre composite
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Published Date

20-10-2019

Language

English

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Abstract

Natural materials such as wood exhibit high mechanical properties through cellulose structured at multiple length scales and embedded in a matrix of similar chemical structure. These hierarchical materials have inspired the design of lightweight composites composed of naturally occurring polymers. However, the close proximity of melt and decomposition temperature remain a challenge. In this work, cellulose propionate (CP) is modified to reduce its glass transition temperature and melt viscosity, allowing its use as a matrix in a natural fibre-reinforced composite. Through better impregnation, the modified CP matrix composites showed an increase in stiffness and strength of ∼10% and 20%, respectively, in comparison to unmodified CP matrix composites. The impact properties also increased by up to 28%, showing that modified CP is a credible matrix for realising sustainable all-cellulose natural fibre composites with high stiffness, strength and toughness.