Mechanical and Rheological Characteristics of Wood Saw Dust, Plastic Blend with and without Maleic Anhydride Compatibilizer

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TITLE:
MECHANICAL AND RHEOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF WOOD SAW DUST,
PLASTIC BLEND WITH AND WITHOUT MALEIC ANHYDRIDE COMPATIBILIZER
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ABSTRACT
There are some initiatives to recycle or reuse materials, making the environment cleaner
than it was some years back. The world is focusing on improving the environment safety in
every country. The wood plastic is a blend made up of wood sawdust and the recycled plastic.
Researchers have discovered ways to use the waste materials to come up with different
components which can be used as household or industrial parts. In this research paper, the
primary focus is on the wood sawdust and plastic blending with or without the anhydride
compatibilizer (Behravesh & Jam , 2009). The plastic materials are non-biodegradable, and in
such cases, the wastes destroy the environment by blocking drainages and destroying the city’s
aesthetics. The machinery and lumbering equipment in the furniture industry are used to shape
wood. The waste obtained from this process is the forest saw dust. The coupling agent is used to
blend the two immiscible components, wood sawdust, and plastics. The blend does not lose the
rheological and mechanical attributes of either of the ingredients used to form the mixture. On
the contrary, it makes the new product very strong.
Keywords: Recycling, compatibilizer, maleic anhydride, plastics (polypropylene), wood
sawdust, polymer blend.
INTRODUCTION
The world is focusing on improving
the environment safety in every country.
The wood plastic is a blend made up of
wood sawdust and the recycled plastic.
These two components, polypropylene, and
plastic undergo polymer blending. Polymers
are slowly gaining fame in the industry as a
new commodity. The standard procedure
used in the process of polymer blends is the
thermoplastic vulcanization, TPV.
Recycling and reuse of waste materials are
making the environment cleaner than it was
some years back. According to statistics on
the report generated by USEPA, about 8.25
million tons of plastic are collected in
Europe, another 246 million tons of solid
waste was obtained by the US municipal in
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the year 2005. On an annual basis, the UK
records up to 500,000 tons of waste plastics
that need recycling. Researchers have
discovered ways to use the waste materials
to come up with different components which
can be used as household or industrial
components (Irina, et al., 2016). In this
research paper, the primary focus is on the
wood sawdust and plastic blending with or
without the anhydride compatibilizer. A
compatibilizer is implemented during the
polymer blending to ensure that the
components being combined attain a good
adhesion within the polymers.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Wood sawdust
The furniture industry is growing with new
trends and furniture designs from different
trees being modeled. The wood saw dust is a
by-product of the furniture. It is obtained in
varied particle sizes and needs to be sifted to
use the correct grain size for the polymer
blending. The machinery and lumbering
equipment in the furniture industry are used
to shape wood (Pascal , et al., 2003). The
waste obtained from this process is the
forest saw dust. Some of the attributes
required of the wood sawdust are that it
needs to have good absorbing properties,
proper chemical reactant, be abrasive, and
must act as a décor. During the polymer
blending, the physical attributes of the PLA
must be adjustable (Achmad, et al., 2014).
Plastic blend
Most of the food items and other products
are being packaged in plastic materials. The
plastic materials are non-biodegradable, and
in such cases, the wastes destroy the
environment by blocking drainages and
destroying the city’s aesthetics (Saeed, et al.,
2006). There are different classifications of
plastics internationally namely,
(i) Polypropylene
(ii) Polyethylene terephthalate
(iii) Polyvinyl chloride
(iv) Polyethylene
(v) Polystyrene
(vi) Polycarbonate (Lexan) and many
more.
The difference between the different types
of plastic is mainly based on the strength
and structure of the material which implies
its applications. For instance, the food
manufacturing industry uses the
polypropylene plastics which have high
thermal resistance and are clear (Arun, et al.,
2017). The material can easily be blended to
form other materials such as ropes, electric
kettles, and water drinking bottles. PET
plastics are generated during the stretching
of the polymers in different directions in
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