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Special Issue "Biocomposites: Bio-Based Materials, Solutions and Products—Selected Papers from the 12th Iberoamerican Congress on Pulp and Paper Research"

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A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Biomacromolecules, Biobased and Biodegradable Polymers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2023) | Viewed by 5114

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Marc Delgado-Aguilar

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Guest Editor

LEPAMAP Group, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Girona, 17071 Girona, Spain
Interests: nanocellulose; papermaking; natural fiber reinforced composites; nanocomposites; biomaterials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Gary Chinga Carrasco

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Guest Editor

RISE PFI, Høgskoleringen 6b, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
Interests: biomaterials; hydrogels; 3D bioprinting; biocomposites; bio-applications; biomanufacturing; biofabrication
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Prof. Dr. Kristiina Oksman

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Guest Editor

Division of Materials Science, Department of Engineering Sciences and Mathematics, Luleå University of Technology, SE-971 87 Luleå, Sweden
Interests: composite materials; nanocomposites; biocomposites; biofibers; cellulose nanomaterials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the frame of the 12^th Edition of the Ibero-American Congress on Pulp and Paper Research (CIADICYP 2022), which was held in Girona (Spain) from 28^th June to 1^st July 2022, different sessions related to biocomposites, bio-based materials, bio-based solutions and products were organized. These sessions covered relevant topics such as cellulose nanomaterials, functional biocomposites, films, membranes, advanced coatings, waste-sourced biocomposites, and processing techniques such as 3D printing, solvent-casting, injection molding, and extrusion. In addition, the papers of this Special Issue will cover important topics such as bio-based and biodegradable composites, fiber-matrix compatibilization, micromechanics of cellulose-based composites, and the special properties, functionalities and applications of cellulose-based nanocomposites. In addition, this Special Issue will also cover topics related to bio-sourced materials and solutions, such as membranes, films and coatings.

This Special Issue is the result of the selected papers from CIADICYP 2022.

Dr. Marc Delgado-Aguilar
Dr. Gary Chinga Carrasco
Prof. Dr. Kristiina Oksman
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

cellulose composites
biocomposites
bio-based materials
polymers
nanocellulose

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

Open AccessArticle

Response of Polypropylene Composites Reinforced with Natural Fibers: Impact Strength and Water-Uptake Behaviors

María E. Vallejos

Fabiola Vilaseca

José A. Méndez

Francisco X. Espinach

Roberto J. Aguado

Marc Delgado-Aguilar

and

Pere Mutjé

Polymers 2023, 15(4), 900; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15040900 - 11 Feb 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 985

Abstract

Composites from polypropylene (PP) reinforced with hemp strands (HS) are prepared in the current work with the aim of deepening on the influence of this reinforcement on the impact performance of these specific composites. Despite all the research conducted in this field, the effect of this natural reinforcement on the absorbed energy during crack formation and propagation is not fully tackled in previous research works. From the methodology and samples’ geometry, the results concluded that the quality of the interface has a noticeable role in the impact resistance of these materials. The interface strength, fiber dispersion and fiber pullout are the main contributors to crack formation, whereas fiber pullout is the main one responsible for crack propagation. Maximum values of absorbed energy were found for PP composites comprising 20–30 wt% of HS and 8 wt% of the coupling agent for the un-notched samples, whereas maximum absorbed energy values corresponded to PP composites with 40 wt% of HS and 4 wt% of coupling agent for the notched samples. The water-absorption behavior in different humid environments is also examined. From the kinetic study, the water diffusion followed a Fickean behavior showing low-diffusion coefficients, increasing with fiber content. This systematic investigation represents a contribution to the analysis of the potential of reinforcing conventional polymers with natural materials, as a strategy towards more sustainable development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biocomposites: Bio-Based Materials, Solutions and Products—Selected Papers from the 12th Iberoamerican Congress on Pulp and Paper Research)

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Open AccessArticle

Simulated Environmental Conditioning of PHB Composites Reinforced with Barley Fibres to Determine the Viability of Their Use as Plastics for the Agriculture Sector

Helena Oliver-Ortega

Fernando Julián

Francesc Xavier Espinach

and

José Alberto Méndez

Polymers 2023, 15(3), 579; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15030579 - 22 Jan 2023

Viewed by 913

Abstract

Nowadays, the search for new materials with a sustainable character to reduce the production of residues is under continuous research. In this sense, fully biodegradable composites based on polyhydroxybutyrate and different pretreated fibres coming from barley straw have been fabricated, and their resistance to environmental controlled conditions have been characterized. The materials were already compounded in a kinetic mixer and injection-moulded as specimens for tensile assay to be aged in a Xenotest chamber so as to simulate environmental conditioning. The samples, after accelerated aging, were characterized thus: mechanical characterization (tensile assay), water uptake (immersion and contact angle), and surface observation (optical and SEM microscopy). The incorporation of the fibres helps the composite to keep its structure for a longer time. On the other hand, the presence of the fibres increases the water uptake capacity to allow water permeation in the composite, which allows final degradation, characterised by a significant drop in properties after one month of exposure to simulated environmental conditions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biocomposites: Bio-Based Materials, Solutions and Products—Selected Papers from the 12th Iberoamerican Congress on Pulp and Paper Research)

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Open AccessArticle

Processing Polymer Blends of Mater-Bi^® and Poly-L-(Lactic Acid) for Blown Film Application with Enhanced Mechanical Strength

and

Polymers 2023, 15(1), 153; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15010153 - 29 Dec 2022

Viewed by 1453

Abstract

Mater-Bi^® is one of the most commercialized starch-based blends used in biodegradable flexible packaging. However, the high ductility and low stiffness of Mater-Bi^® might limit its application and developing a solution to tailor the stiffness and mechanical strength is highly desirable. In the present work, blends based on Mater-Bi^® and poly-L-(lactic acid) (PLLA) at a different ratio from 70/30 to 50/50 wt% were prepared via melt-extrusion and the effect of the PLLA content and Joncryl ADR^® as a reactive compatibilizing agent, on the mechanical properties, melts rheology, morphology and disintegration aptitude were investigated. The inclusion of PLLA in Mater-Bi^® has a marked beneficial effect on the tensile strength and stiffness of the blend while maintaining acceptable ductility. The addition of the reactive compatibilizing agent contributed to improving the strength and elongation at the break of the blend. The melt rheology of the blend was also affected by the ratio of the two components, mostly when the Joncryl ADR^® was present. The disintegration by biodegradation of the blend was preserved in the presence of PLLA, and it takes less than 30 days for the films to completely decompose and disintegrate under controlled composting conditions. Interestingly, a thin film from Mater-Bi^®/PLLA 60/40 was successfully prepared by blown film extrusion, demonstrating a good balance between stretchability (elongation at break exceeding 100%) and stiffness (1.8 GPa). This work opened to broadening the use of starch-based biodegradable plastic toward more demanding applications such as mulching films. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biocomposites: Bio-Based Materials, Solutions and Products—Selected Papers from the 12th Iberoamerican Congress on Pulp and Paper Research)

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Open AccessArticle

Influence of Compounding Parameters on the Tensile Properties and Fibre Dispersion of Injection-Moulded Polylactic Acid and Thermomechanical Pulp Fibre Biocomposites

Chiara Zarna

Sandra Rodríguez-Fabià

Andreas T. Echtermeyer

and

Gary Chinga-Carrasco

Polymers 2022, 14(20), 4432; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14204432 - 20 Oct 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1195

Abstract

Thermomechanical pulp (TMP) fibres can serve as renewable, cost-efficient and lightweight reinforcement for thermoplastic polymers such as poly(lactic acid) (PLA). The reinforcing ability of TMP fibres can be reduced due to various factors, e.g., insufficient dispersion of the fibres in the matrix material, fibre shortening under processing and poor surface interaction between fibres and matrix. A two-level factorial design was created and PLA together with TMP fibres and an industrial and recyclable side stream were processed in a twin-screw microcompounder accordingly. From the obtained biocomposites, dogbone specimens were injection-moulded. These specimens were tensile tested, and the compounding parameters statistically evaluated. Additionally, the analysis included the melt flow index (MFI), a dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and three-dimensional X-ray micro tomography (X-

μ

CT). The assessment provided insight into the microstructure that could affect the mechanical performance of the biocomposites. The temperature turned out to be the major influence factor on tensile strength and elongation, while no significant difference was quantified for the tensile modulus. A temperature of 180 °C, screw speed of 50 rpm and compounding time of 1 min turned out to be the optimal settings. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biocomposites: Bio-Based Materials, Solutions and Products—Selected Papers from the 12th Iberoamerican Congress on Pulp and Paper Research)

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Special Issue "Biocomposites: Bio-Based Materials, Solutions and Products—Selected Papers from the 12th Iberoamerican Congress on Pulp and Paper Research"

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