Mechanical and thermal properties of polypropylene (PP) composites filled with modified shell waste

• Published in: Journal of hazardous materials 2013-11, Vol.262, p.212-217
• Main Authors: Yao, Z.T., Chen, T., Li, H.Y., Xia, M.S., Ye, Y., Zheng, H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Bio-filler; Carbonate calcium; Chemical engineering; Crystallization, leaching, miscellaneous separations; Exact sciences and technology; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Photoelectron Spectroscopy; Pollution; Polypropylene; Polypropylenes - chemistry; Shell waste; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; Surface modification; Thermogravimetry; X-Ray Diffraction
• ISSN: 0304-3894; 1873-3336
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2013.08.062

•Adding modified shell powder could significantly increase the properties of PP.•The modified shell powder could act as a nucleating agent in PP matrix.•The modified shell powder has a potential to be used as a bio-filler. Shell waste, with its high content of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) plus organic matrix, has a potential to be used as a bio-filler. In this work, shell waste was modified by furfural and then incorporated to reinforce polypropylene (PP). The shell waste and modified powder were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy equipped with an energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM-EDS), X-ray photoelectronic spectroscopy (XPS), and Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The mechanical and thermal properties of neat PP and PP composites were investigated as well. Thermal gravimetric (TG) analyses confirmed the reinforcing role of modified powder in PP composites. The mechanical properties studied showed that adding modified powder could significantly increase the impact strength, elongation at break point and flexural modulus of composites. The maximum incorporation content could reach 15wt.% with a good balance between toughness and stiffness of PP composites. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results showed that the modified powder could act as a nucleating agent and thus increase the crystallization temperature of PP. Polarized optical microscopy (POM) observation also indicated that the introduction of modified powder could promote the heterogeneous nucleation of PP matrix.