Characteristics of polypropylene composites filled with palm oil-modified cellulose powder

Hydrophilic cellulose powder was modified with palm oil for hydrophobicity to strengthen the interfacial bonding between cellulose powder and hydrophobic polypropylene (PP). The palm oil-modified cellulose powders with various palm oil contents were analyzed by compatibility test, FTIR spectroscopy and TGA. The IR absorption peak for the ester bridges between cellulose powder and palm oil increased with the palm oil content attached to the cellulose powder. The PP/cellulose (80/20 by weight) composites with the pristine or one of the modified cellulose powders were prepared by melt blending followed by compression molding. The mechanical properties of the composites were measured by an impact and tensile test. The impact strength, elongation at break and water-resistance increased but tensile modulus decreased with the palm oil content. The composite with 4.87 wt.% of the palm oil showed optimum tensile properties. The SEM images showed that the interfacial bonding between the cellulose powders and the PP matrix was strengthened by the modification of the cellulose powder with the palm oil.