Biocomposites Based on Biodegradable Thermoplastic Polyester and Lignocellulose Fibers

Abstract

In the recent years, biobased products have raised great interest since sustainable development policies tend to expand with the decreasing reserve of fossil fuel and the growing concern for the environment. Consequently, biopolymers, i.e., biodegradable polymers, have been the topic of many researches. They can be mainly classified as agro-polymers (starch, protein, etc.) and biodegradable thermoplastic homo or copolyesters (polyhydroxyalkanoates, poly(lactic acid), etc.). These latter, also called biopolyesters, can be synthesized from fossil resources but main productions are obtained from renewable resources. Unfortunately for certain applications, biopolyesters cannot be fully competitive with conventional thermoplastics because some of their properties are too weak. Therefore, to extend their applications, these biopolymers have been formulated and associated with lignocellulose fillers, which could bring a large range of improved properties (stiffness, crystallinity, thermal stability, etc.). The resulting “biocomposites” have been the subject of many recent publications. This chapter is dedicated to this class of materials, which are elaborated from different natural fibers and biopolyesters. These systems based on renewable resources nowadays show strong developments in different fields, including automotive and packaging industries.