Sustainable green composites: Value addition to agricultural residues and perennial grasses

Abstract

This work has explored the potential use of lignocellulosic agricultural residues like soy stalk, corn stalk, wheat straw, and perennial grasses, like switchgrass and miscanthus, as reinforcement for engineering value-added biobased composite materials. The effect of incorporating 30 wt % lignocellulosic fibers into a biodegradable polymer matrix comprising a pre-blend of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) and poly(butylene adipate-coterephthalate) (PBAT) has been investigated. Results of this work explain that fiber chemical composition and fiber length distribution provide a complementary effect on the mechanical and thermal properties of the resulting biobased composites. Comparing the effects of all the fiber types, miscanthus (MS)-based composites, showed slightly higher tensile strength, and Young's modulus improved by 104%. The highest heat deflection temperature of 110 °C was obtained with PHBV/PBAT/MS composites. This study has revealed prospects for hybridization of these lignocellulosic fibers to fabricate hybrid composites with enhanced performance. © 2013 American Chemical Society.