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Mechanical Properties of Poly (Lactic Acid)/Hemp Fiber Composites Prepared with a Novel Method

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Abstract

This research dealt with a novel method of fabricating green composites with biodegradable poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and natural hemp fiber. The new preparation method was that hemp fibers were firstly blending-spun with a small amount of PLA fibers to form compound fiber pellets, and then the traditional twin-screw extruding and injection-molding method were applied for preparing the composites containing 10–40 wt% hemp fibers with PLA pellets and compound fiber pellets. This method was very effective to control the feeding and dispersing of fibers uniformly in the matrix thus much powerful for improving the mechanical properties. The tensile strength and modulus were improved by 39 and 92 %, respectively without a significant decrease in elongation at break, and the corresponding flexural strength and modulus of composites were also improved by 62 and 90 %, respectively, when the hemp fiber content was 40 wt%. The impact strength of composite with 20 wt% hemp fiber was improved nearly 68 % compared with the neat PLA. The application of the silane coupling agent promoted further the mechanical properties of composites attributed to the improvement of interaction between fiber and resin matrix.

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Acknowledgments

This work was sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) program (No. 21074016). Authors also gratefully appreciate Xinyi Textile Co., Ltd. for providing the materials.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Faculty of Chemical, Environmental and Biological Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, 116024, China

    Yanan Song, Jun Liu, Shaozhuang Chen, Yubin Zheng & Yuezhen Bin

  2. Department of Engineering Mechanics, Faculty of Vehicle Engineering and Mechanics, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, 116024, China

    Shilun Ruan

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  1. Yanan Song
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  2. Jun Liu
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  3. Shaozhuang Chen
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  4. Yubin Zheng
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  5. Shilun Ruan
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  6. Yuezhen Bin
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Correspondence to Yuezhen Bin.

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Song, Y., Liu, J., Chen, S. et al. Mechanical Properties of Poly (Lactic Acid)/Hemp Fiber Composites Prepared with a Novel Method. J Polym Environ 21, 1117–1127 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10924-013-0569-z

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