ABSTRACT

Nowadays, the research fraternity across the globe is putting incredible efforts toward the development of sustainable materials. During this endeavor, the potential of sustainable biocomposites incorporating natural fibers as reinforcement and biopolymers as the matrix has received widespread attention for addressing the challenges associated with synthetic fibers and petroleum-derived polymers. However, the limited information about the processing guidelines for these materials and the lack of scientific evidence on how the processing routes affect the performance of the fabricated composites have limited their usage in several commercial applications. In the current investigation, three manufacturing routes, direct-injection molding (DIM) without compounding; compounding using extrusion followed by injection molding (EIM); and compounding using extrusion followed by compression molding (ECM) have been adopted to develop pineapple fibers (PFs)/poly-lactic acid (PLA) biocomposites. The investigation revealed that the crystallinity, visco-elastic, and mechanical responses of the composites fabricated by EIM significantly dominate the composites fabricated by DIM and ECM. The microstructural analysis confirms the severe attrition of fibers during ECM. The thermal analysis of the fabricated composites established that the important responses; glass transition, crystallization, and melting temperature, are independent of the choice of the manufacturing process.

摘要

如今，全球的研究界正在为可持续材料的开发做出令人难以置信的努力。在这项努力中，将天然纤维作为增强材料和生物聚合物作为基质的可持续生物复合材料的潜力已受到广泛关注，以解决与合成纤维和石油衍生聚合物相关的挑战。然而，关于这些材料的加工指南的信息有限，并且缺乏关于加工路线如何影响制造复合材料性能的科学证据，限制了它们在几个商业应用中的使用。在目前的调查中，三种制造路线，直接注射成型（DIM），无需复合；使用挤出后注塑 (EIM) 进行混炼；已经采用挤出和压缩成型 (ECM) 进行复合来开发菠萝纤维 (PFs)/聚乳酸 (PLA) 生物复合材料。研究表明，EIM 制造的复合材料的结晶度、粘弹性和机械响应显着支配了 DIM 和 ECM 制造的复合材料。微观结构分析证实了 ECM 过程中纤维的严重磨损。制造的复合材料的热分析确定了重要的响应；玻璃化转变、结晶和熔化温度与制造工艺的选择无关。由 EIM 制造的复合材料的机械响应显着支配了由 DIM 和 ECM 制造的复合材料。微观结构分析证实了 ECM 过程中纤维的严重磨损。制造的复合材料的热分析确定了重要的响应；玻璃化转变、结晶和熔化温度与制造工艺的选择无关。由 EIM 制造的复合材料的机械响应显着支配了由 DIM 和 ECM 制造的复合材料。微观结构分析证实了 ECM 过程中纤维的严重磨损。制造的复合材料的热分析确定了重要的响应；玻璃化转变、结晶和熔化温度与制造工艺的选择无关。