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Polymers
Special Issues
Polymer-Based Green Composites
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Polymer-Based Green Composites

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Circular and Green Polymer Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2022) | Viewed by 9441

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Pooria Khalili

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Swedish Centre for Resource Recovery, University of Borås, 501 90 Borås, Sweden
Interests: bio-based composites; mechanical performance; structural simulation; regenerated cellulose fabric composites
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the past two decades, the reinforcing potential of lignocellulosic and cellulosic fibers in polymers, in particular thermoplastics, has attracted industry and researchers. Particular consideration has been paid to wood, pulp fibres, and natural fibres (NFs), especially in countries where such natural resources are abundant. These fibres provide CO2 neutrality, better disposal and recyclability, reduced abrasion to manufacturing machinery, and possess a lower density of 1.5 g/cm3 rather than 2.5 g/cm3 compared to that of synthetic glass counterparts. Additionally, since the forest industry is focusing on pulp-based products, we would to like focus on these kinds of products. The combination of thermoplastic polymer and cellulosic/natural fibers can provide bio-based composites, which can potentially meet the requirements of composite parts for different industries, such as automotive interiors or exteriors. Suitable mechanical performance and capability of biocomposites to maintain an acceptable range of mechanical properties under different environments (effect of aging) are the key parameters to select the right materials for the components.

Presently, the investigation of end-of-life scenarios for biocomposites is a cutting-edge contribution. Novel ideas on an improved overall performance of biocomposites for real-life industrial applications in the context of circular economy are of high value.

This Special issue has a particular focus on green composites, high-performance biocomposites, enhanced mechanical properties of ecofriendly composites, and their positive impact on the circular economy.

This Special issue will consider recent developments and research in processing, characterization, structure, morphology, and simulation of advanced biobased composites. Recent advances in improved interfaces with the aid of treatments and utilizing different fillers in nano, micro, etc. scales and applications of advanced biocomposites will be taken into account.

It is our pleasure to invite academics and experts from industry to submit a manuscript for this Special issue. We aim to present original articles, short communications, and reviews on topics related to advances in sustainable composite materials.

Best regards,
Dr. Pooria Khalili
Guest Editor

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

  • biopolymer
  • biocomposites
  • cellulose-based fabrics (viscose fibers)
  • natural fibers
  • mechanical performance
  • structural simulation of biobased composites (for instance, drop test simulation)
  • effects of the environment, such as ultraviolet light, temperature, and moisture
  • circular economy
  • flame retardancy
  • thermoplastics

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1868 KiB  
Article
A Comparative Study on the Aerobic Biodegradation of the Biopolymer Blends of Poly(butylene succinate), Poly(butylene adipate terephthalate) and Poly(lactic acid)
by Nomvuyo Nomadolo, Omotola Esther Dada, Andri Swanepoel, Teboho Mokhena and Sudhakar Muniyasamy
Polymers 2022, 14(9), 1894; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14091894 - 5 May 2022
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 3193
Abstract
The aim of the present work is to evaluate the rate and mechanisms of the aerobic biodegradation of biopolymer blends under controlled composting conditions using the CO2 evolution respirometric method. The biopolymer blends of poly (butylene adipate terephthalate) (PBAT) blended with poly [...] Read more.
The aim of the present work is to evaluate the rate and mechanisms of the aerobic biodegradation of biopolymer blends under controlled composting conditions using the CO2 evolution respirometric method. The biopolymer blends of poly (butylene adipate terephthalate) (PBAT) blended with poly (lactic acid) (PLA), and PBAT blended with poly (butylene succinate) (PBS) by melt extrusion, were tested to evaluate the amount of carbon mineralized under home and industrial composting conditions. The changes in the structural, chemical, thermal and morphological characteristics of the biopolymer blends before and after biodegradation were investigated by FT-IR, DSC, TGA, XRD and SEM. Both blends showed higher degradation rates under industrial composting conditions, when compared to home composting conditions. This was confirmed by FT-IR analysis showing an increase in the intensity of hydroxyl and carbonyl absorption bands. SEM revealed that there was microbial colony formation and disintegration on the surfaces of the biopolymer blends. The obtained results suggest that industrial composting conditions are the most suitable for an enhanced biodegradation of the biopolymer blends viz PBAT–PBS and PBAT–PLA. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer-Based Green Composites)
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15 pages, 2011 KiB  
Article
Application of Fungal Biomass for the Development of New Polylactic Acid-Based Biocomposites
by Mohammadtaghi Asadollahzadeh, Amir Mahboubi, Mohammad J. Taherzadeh, Dan Åkesson and Patrik R. Lennartsson
Polymers 2022, 14(9), 1738; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14091738 - 24 Apr 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2479
Abstract
Fungal biomass (FB), a by-product of the fermentation processes produced in large volumes, is a promising biomaterial that can be incorporated into poly(lactic acid) (PLA) to develop enhanced biocomposites that fully comply with the biobased circular economy concept. The PLA/FB composites, with the [...] Read more.
Fungal biomass (FB), a by-product of the fermentation processes produced in large volumes, is a promising biomaterial that can be incorporated into poly(lactic acid) (PLA) to develop enhanced biocomposites that fully comply with the biobased circular economy concept. The PLA/FB composites, with the addition of triethyl citrate (TEC) as a biobased plasticizer, were fabricated by a microcompounder at 150 °C followed by injection molding. The effects of FB (10 and 20 wt %) and TEC (5, 10, and 15 wt %) contents on the mechanical, thermal and surface properties of the biocomposites were analyzed by several techniques. The PLA/FB/TEC composites showed a rough surface in their fracture section. A progressive decrease in tensile strength and Young’s modulus was observed with increasing FB and TEC, while elongation at break and impact strength started to increase. The neat PLA and biocomposite containing 10% FB and 15% TEC exhibited the lowest (3.84%) and highest (224%) elongation at break, respectively. For all blends containing FB, the glass transition, crystallization and melting temperatures were shifted toward lower values compared to the neat PLA. The incorporation of FB to PLA thus offers the possibility to overcome one of the main drawbacks of PLA, which is brittleness. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer-Based Green Composites)
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13 pages, 55485 KiB  
Article
Fabrication, Mechanical Testing and Structural Simulation of Regenerated Cellulose Fabric Elium® Thermoplastic Composite System
by Pooria Khalili, Mikael Skrifvars and Ahmet Semih Ertürk
Polymers 2021, 13(17), 2969; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13172969 - 31 Aug 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2927
Abstract
Regenerated cellulose fibres are an important part of the forest industry, and they can be used in the form of fabrics as reinforcement materials. Similar to the natural fibres (NFs), such as flax, hemp and jute, that are widely used in the automotive [...] Read more.
Regenerated cellulose fibres are an important part of the forest industry, and they can be used in the form of fabrics as reinforcement materials. Similar to the natural fibres (NFs), such as flax, hemp and jute, that are widely used in the automotive industry, these fibres possess good potential to be used for semi-structural applications. In this work, the mechanical properties of regenerated cellulose fabric-reinforced poly methyl methacrylate (PMMA) (Elium®) composite were investigated and compared with those of its natural fibre composite counterparts. The developed composite demonstrated higher tensile strength and ductility, as well as comparable flexural properties with those of NF-reinforced epoxy and Elium® composite systems, whereas the Young’s modulus was lower. The glass transition temperature demonstrated a value competitive (107.7 °C) with that of other NF composites. Then, the behavior of the bio-composite under bending and loading was simulated, and a materials model was used to simulate the behavior of a car door panel in a flexural scenario. Modelling can contribute to predicting the structural behavior of the bio-based thermoplastic composite for secondary applications, which is the aim of this work. Finite element simulations were performed to assess the deflection and force transfer mechanism for the car door interior. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymer-Based Green Composites)
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