Caracterización mecánica y por FTIR de bio-composites reforzados con residuos lignocelulósicos : Caracterización mecánica a tracción y caracterización por FTIR de bio-composites reforzados con residuos lignocelulósicos.

Abstract

The search for solutions for the responsible management of agro-industrial waste has motivated humans to research and develop bio-composites reinforced with lignocellulosic materials. In this work we sought to use palm rachis and palm kernel fibres generated as by-products of the palm oil industry as reinforcement materials for thermoplastic polymeric matrix bio-composites. The effect of the proportion of rachis fibre and palm kernel present in the reinforcement on the mechanical properties of percentage elongation at break, modulus of elasticity, tensile strength and toughness of the bio-composite, as well as its effect on the infrared spectra obtained by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), was evaluated by means of the mechanical tensile test. The fibre/palm kernel ratios studied were 10:90 and 20:80. The bio-composite was made by compression moulding technique, at a processing temperature of 130 ºC and with a palm rachis fibre of 45-50 mesh size. It was found that increasing the proportion of fibre in the reinforcement increases the stiffness of the bio-composite. It was also observed that the addition of a greater amount of fibre in the composite favours the interaction between the reinforcement components and the matrix, as it favours the formation of hydrogen bonds, which leads to an increase in the intensity of the absorption bands of this type of bonds.