Effect of fiber pretreatment condition on the interfacial strength and mechanical properties of wood fiber/PP composites

✍ Scribed by Jingshen Wu; Demei Yu; Chi-Ming Chan; Jangkyo Kim; Yiu-Wing Mai

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2000
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 489 KB
• Volume: 76
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0021-8995
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-4628(20000516)76:7<1000::aid-app3>3.0.co;2-x

✦ Synopsis

The effect of fiber surface pretreatment on the interfacial strength and mechanical properties of wood fiber/polypropylene (WF/PP) composites are investigated. The results demonstrate that fiber surface conditions significantly influence the fiber-matrix interfacial bond, which, in turn, determines the mechanical properties of the composites. The WF/PP composite containing fibers pretreated with an acid-silane aqueous solution exhibits the highest tensile properties among the materials studied. This observation is a direct result of the strong interfacial bond caused by the acid/ water condition used in the fiber pretreatment. Evidence from coupling chemistry, rheological and electron microscopic studies support the above conclusion. When SEBSg-MA copolymer is used, a synergistic toughening effect between the wood fiber and the copolymer is observed. The V-notch Charpy impact strength of the WF/PP/SEBS-g-MA composite is substantially higher than that of the WF/PP composite. The synergistic toughening mechanisms are discussed with respect to the interfacial bond strength, fiber-matrix debonding, and matrix plastic deformation.