Impact property of jute fabric reinforced PLA composites

Abstract

In recent years, due to the increasing of the environmental issues, biodegradable polymers, especially PLA, have attracted attention. However, their applications are limited because the impact resistance and heat resistance of PLA are lower than those of the petroleum-derived resin. The impact resistance of PLA has been the subject of research and development in injection-moulding, which can be achieved by combining PLA and short natural fibre together. However, the impact resistance of PLA has not risen sufficiently, thus reinforcement of PLA by continuous fibre is expected. A FRTP high speed compression moulding method using the electromagnetic induction heating system, in which it is possible to control the temperature of the mould surface, is proposed and high speed forming of FRTP using continuous fibre becomes possible. However, the impact resistance of PLA reinforced by jute continuous fibre has not been studied yet. In this study, jute continuous fibre reinforced PLA was moulded by the FRTP high speed compression moulding method, using an electromagnetic induction heating system. The effect of nucleating agents and the annealing process on their impact properties were investigated. Since this system allows control of the temperature of the mould surface, it is able to perform an annealing process during the moulding process. In this study, jute continuous fibre and PLA with a nucleating agent were used to develop high impact resistance FRTP. The impact property of JFRTP is discussed. © 2010 WIT Press.