Abstract
Candelilla bagasse fiber (CBF) was prepared by a mesh sieve and ball-milling process and its reinforcing effect in a polymer matrix analyzed. Composites of polypropylene (PP) and CBF were prepared by melt blending with varying amounts (20, 25, and 30 wt%) of fiber using maleic anhydride PP as coupling agent. The chemical composition of CBF was analyzed according to Technological Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry (TAPPI) methods, and the morphology and thermal and chemical properties of CBF and its composites were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and tensile testing. In general, fibers extracted from candelilla by a reduction process are comparable in terms of micro- and nanostructure to other lignocellulosic fibers. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) results reveal that sieve-milling reduces the fiber size. The results also show that the thermal stability of PP was enhanced when using CBF, but the crystallinity index of the PP composites decreased slightly according to DSC and XRD results. Furthermore, the Young’s modulus was increased in PP/CBF samples with and without MAPP to obtain improved wettability and fiber–polymer adhesion. We found that CBF is an excellent alternative to replace conventional materials or synthetic fibers, as well as for reinforcement in polymer composites.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bledzki AK, Reihmane S, Gassan J (1996) Properties and modification methods for vegetable fibers for natural fiber composites. J Appl Polym Sci 59:1329–1336
Canales E, Canales-Martinez V, Zamarron EM (2006) Candelilla, del desierto mexicano hacia el mundo. CONABIO. Biodiversitas 69:1–5
Cao Y, Chan F, Chui Y, Xiao H (2012) Characterization of flax fibres modified by alkaline, enzyme, and steam-heat treatments. BioResources 7:4109–4121
Carrillo F, Colom X, Suñol JJ, Saurina J (2004) Structural FTIR analysis and thermal characterization of lyocell and viscose-type fibres. Eur Polym J 40:2229–2234
Chattopadhyay SK, Khandal RK, Uppaluri R, Ghoshal AK (2010) Mechanical, thermal, and morphological properties of maleic anhydride-g-polypropylene compatibilized and chemically modified banana-fiber-reinforced polypropylene composites. J Appl Polym Sci 117:1731–1740
Chen H, Shi X, Zhu Y, Zhang Y, Xu J (2008) Synthesis and characterization of macromolecular surface modifier PP-g-PEG for polypropylene. Front Chem Eng Chin 2:102–108
De Rosa IM, Kenny JM, Puglia D, Santulli C, Sarasini F (2010) Morphological, thermal and mechanical characterization of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) fibres as potential reinforcement in polymer composites. Compos Sci Technol 70:116–122
Doan T-T-L, Gao S-L, Mader E (2006) Jute/polypropylene composites I. Effect of matrix modification. Compos Sci Technol 66:952–963
Fink HP, Hofmann D, Philipp B (1995) Some aspects of lateral chain order in cellulosics from X-ray scattering. Cellulose 2:51–70
Foulk JA, Fuqua MA, Ulven CA, Alcock MM (2010) Flax fibre quality and influence on interfacial properties of composites. Int J Sust Eng 3:17–24
French AD (2014) Idealized powder diffraction patterns for cellulose polymorphs. Cellulose 21:885–896
Gallagher LW, McDonald AG (2013) The effect of micron sized wood fibers in wood plastics composites. Maderas. Cienc y Tecnol 15:357–374
Haque MM, Islam MS, Islam MN (2012) Preparation and characterization of polypropylene composites reinforced with chemically treated coir. J Polym Res 19:9847–9854
Herrera-Franco PJ, Valadez-Gonzalez A (2005) A study of the mechanical properties of short natural-fiber reinforced composites. Compos B 36:597–608
Howsmon JA, Marchessault RH (1959) The ball-milling of cellulose fibers and recrystallization effects. J Appl Polym Sci 1:313–322
Huang Z, Wang N, Zhang Y, Hu H, Luo Y (2012) Effect of mechanical activation pretreatment on the properties of sugarcane bagasse/poly(vinyl chloride) composites. Compos Pt A 43:114–120
Hult EL, Iversen T, Sugiyama J (2003) Characterization of the supermolecular structure of cellulose in wood pulp fibres. Cellulose 10:103–110
Jakovek JL, Backhaus RA, Herman K (1986) Micropropagation of candelilla, Euphorbia antysiphilitica Zucc. Plant Cell Tissue Organ Cult 7:145–148
Jarukumjorn K, Suppakarn N (2009) Mechanical properties and flammability of sisal/PP composites: effect of flame retardant type and content. Compos Pt B 40:613–618
Joseph PV, Joseph K, Thomas S (1999) Effect of processing variables on the mechanical properties of sisal-fiber-reinforced polypropylene composites. Compos Sci Technol 59:1625–1640
Joseph PV, Joseph K, Thomas S, Prasad VS, Groeninckx G, Sarkissova M (2003) The thermal and crystallization studies of short sisal fibre reinforced polypropylene composites. Compos Pt A 34:253–266
Julson JL, Subbrarao G, Stokke DD, Gieselman HH, Muthukumarappan K (2004) Mechanical properties of biorenewable fiber/plastic composites. J Appl Polym Sci 93:2484–2493
Kalia S, Kaith BS, Karnani Kaur I (2011) Cellulose fibers: bio-and nano-polymer composites. Springer, New York
Karacan I, Benli H (2011) A x-ray diffraction study for isotactic polypropylene fibres produced with take-up speeds of 2500–4250 m/min. Tekstil ve Konfeksiyon 3:201–209
Karian HG (2003) Handbook of polypropylene and polypropylene composites. Rhe Tech Inc, Michigan
Karnani R, Krishnan M, Narayan R (1997) Biofiber-reinforced polypropylene composites. Polym Eng Sci 37:476–483
Khalina A, Zainuddin ES, Aji IS (2011) Rheological behaviour of polypropylene/kenaf fibre composite: effect of fibre size. Key Eng Mater 471:513–517
Lamberti G, Brucato V (2003) Real-time orientation and crystallinity measurements during the isotactic polypropylene film-casting process. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 41:998–1008
Law A, Simon L, Lee-Sullivan P (2008) Effects of thermal aging on isotactic polypropylene crystallinity. Polym Eng Sci 48:627–633
Lewin M (2007) Handbook of fiber chemistry. Taylor & Francis Group, USA
Liao Z, Huang Z, Hu H, Zhang Y, Tan Y (2011) Microscopic structure and properties changes of cassava stillage residue. Bioresour Technol 102:7953–7958
Morales-Rueda JA, Dibildox-Alvarado E, Charo-Alonso MA, Weiss RG, Toro-Vazquez JF (2009) Thermo mechanical properties of candelilla wax and dotriacontane organogels in safflower oil. Eur J Lip Sci Technol 111:207–215
Mukherjee PS, Satyanarayana KG (1986) Structure and properties of some vegetable fibres. J Mater Sci 21:51–56
Mutjé P, Vallejos ME, Girones J, Villaseca F, Lopez A, Lopez JP, Mendez JA (2006) Effect of maleated polypropylene as coupling agent for polypropylene composites reinforced with hemp strands. J Appl Polym Sci 102:833–840
Mwaikambo LY, Ansell MP (2002) Chemical modification of hemp, sisal, jute, and kapok fibers by alkalization. J Appl Polym Sci 84(12):2222–2234
Nabi-Saheb D, Jog JP (1999) Natural fiber composites: a review. Adv Polym Technol 18:351–363
Nelson ML, O’Connor RT (1964) Relation of certain infrared bands to cellulose crystallinity and crystal lattice type. Part II. A new infrared ratio for estimation of crystallinity in cellulose I and II. J Appl Polym Sci 8:1325–1341
Novak I, Florian S (2001) Study of the change in polarity of polypropylene modified in bulk by polar copolymers. J Mater Sci 36:4863–4867
O’Sullivan AC (1997) Cellulose: the structure slowly unravels. Cellulose 4:173–207
Olson AM, Salmen L (2004) The association of water to cellulose and hemicellulose in paper examined by FTIR spectroscopy. Carbohydr Res 339:813–818
Paiva MC, Ammar I, Campos AR, Cheikh RB, Cunha AM (2007) Alfa fibres: mechanical, morphological and interfacial characterization. Compos Sci Technol 67:1132–1138
Park S, Baker JO, Himmel ME, Parrilla PA, Johnson DK (2010) Cellulose crystallinity index: measurement techniques and their impact on interpreting cellulose performance. Biotechnol Biofuels 3:1–10
Parthasarthy G, Sevegney M, Kannan RM (2002) Rheooptical Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy of the deformation behavior in quenched and slow-cooled isotactic polypropylene films. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 40:2539–2551
Poletto M, Ornaghi-Junior HL, Zattera AJ (2014) Native cellulose: structure, characterization and thermal properties. Materials 7:6105–6119
Popescu MC, Popescu CM, Lisa G, Sakata Y (2011) Evaluation of morphological and chemical aspects of different wood species by spectroscopy and thermal methods. J Mol Struct 988:65–72
Qiu W, Endo T, Hirotsu T (2006) Interfacial interaction, morphology, and tensile properties of a composite of highly crystalline cellulose and maleated polypropylene. J Appl Polym Sci 102:3830–3841
Robin JJ, Breton Y (2001) Reinforcement of recycled polyethylene with wood fibers heated. J Reinf Plast Compos 20:1253–1262
Rojas-Molina R, De Leon-Zapata MA, Saucedo-Pompa S, Aguilar-Gonzalez MA, Aguilar CN (2013) Chemical and structural characterization of candelilla (Euphorbia antisyphilitica Zucc). J Med Plants Res 7:702–705
Saba N, Tahir PM, Jawaid M (2014) A review on potentiality of nano filler/natural fiber filled polymer hybrid composites. Polymers 6:2247–2273
Scherrer P (1918) Bestimmung der Grösse und der inneren Struktur von Kolloidteilchen mittels Röntgensrahlen. Nachr Ges Wiss Goettingen 2:98–100
Segal L, Creely JJ, Martin AE, Conrad CM (1959) An empirical method for estimating the degree of crystallinity of native cellulose using the x-ray diffraction. Text Res J 29:786–794
Sena-Neto AR, Araujo MAM, Souza FVD, Mattoso HC (2013) Characterization and comparative evaluation of thermal, structural, chemical, mechanical and morphological properties of six pineapple leaf fiber varieties for use in composites. Indus Crops Prod 43:529–537
Turner-Jones A, Aizlewood JM, Beckett DR (1963) Crystalline forms of isotactic polypropylene. Makromol Chem 75:134–158
Yang H, Yan R, Chen H, Lee DH, Zheng C (2007) Characteristics of hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin pyrolysis. Fuel 86:1781–1788
Zhang Y, Gan T, Li Q, Su J, Lin Y, Wei Y, Huang Z, Yang M (2014) Mechanical and interfacial properties of poly(vinyl chloride) based composites reinforced by cassava stillage residue with different surface treatments. Appl Surf Sci 314:603–609
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Multiceras for donation of candelilla bagasse. The authors are grateful to Indelpro for kind donation of polypropylene (Profax-6523).
Funding
This work was supported financially by the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACyT grant number 331799).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Morales-Cepeda, A.B., Ponce-Medina, M.E., Salas-Papayanopolos, H. et al. Preparation and characterization of candelilla fiber (Euphorbia antisyphilitica) and its reinforcing effect in polypropylene composites. Cellulose 22, 3839–3849 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-015-0776-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-015-0776-y