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Thermal characterization of a series of lignin-based polypropylene blends

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Abstract

Polypropylene (PP), due to its chemical stability, is considered one of the main responsible of the increasing amount of plastic wastes on earth. To overcome this problem and to reduce the dependence of oil feedstocks, the use of lignocellulosics as fillers or reinforcements in thermoplastic materials has been increasing enormously in the last decades. In the present work, Liquid Wood (a mixture of cellulose, hemp, fax and lignin) was used to prepare, by mechanical mixing followed by thermal extrusion, blends of various PP/Liquid Wood ratios. Differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis experiments were performed in order to verify whether and how much the composition of the blends affects the thermal properties of the obtained compounds. Both calorimetric and thermogravimetric results indicate that the application of PP as a matrix does not limit the processing temperature of Liquid Wood, which may lead to a perfect marketable composite from these components. The addition of Liquid Wood also resulted in enhanced mechanical properties for the PP/Liquid Wood blends.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support received from Regione Siciliana with the project INTEP “INnovazione TEcnologica e di Processo per il settore manifatturiero” POR 4.1.2a and the Italian Minister for Research and University (MIUR) for the support with the project PON1878 Low Noise and PON BRIT. One of the authors (i.e.G. Cicala) wishes to acknowledge the University of Catania for the support on mechanical testing through the grant NanoCult.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture and INSTM UdR, University of Catania, V.le a. Doria 6, 95125, Catania, Italy

    Ignazio Blanco, Gianluca Cicala, Alberta Latteri & Giuseppe Saccullo

  2. Institute for Polymer Materials and Plastics Engineering, Agricolastrasse 6, 38678, Clausthal-Zellerfeld, Germany

    Ahmed Mohammed Moneeb El-Sabbagh & Gerhard Ziegmann

Authors
  1. Ignazio Blanco
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  2. Gianluca Cicala
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  3. Alberta Latteri
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  4. Giuseppe Saccullo
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  5. Ahmed Mohammed Moneeb El-Sabbagh
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  6. Gerhard Ziegmann
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Correspondence to Ignazio Blanco.

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Blanco, I., Cicala, G., Latteri, A. et al. Thermal characterization of a series of lignin-based polypropylene blends. J Therm Anal Calorim 127, 147–153 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-016-5596-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-016-5596-2

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