Effect of Waste Wood Biomass on the Properties of Wood Sanding Dust/Recycled Polypropylene Composites

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Abstract

Wood–plastic composites (WPCs) are a young generation of (semi)-biocomposites that have attracted increasing research interest in both scientific and industrial areas over the past few decades. The use of WPCs is rapidly growing worldwide in the automobile industry and building engineering for the production of consumer goods, domestic and technical materials, etc. To decrease climate change, more research focuses on decreasing waste wood biomass (WWB) burning and increasing its conversion into value-added products. This study aimed to characterise the WWB and to investigate its effect on the composition of a hybrid lignocellulosic filler on the properties of recycled polypropylene (rPP)-based wood-plastic composites (WPCs). The WWB was isolated from model wood processing wastewater with a new hybrid coagulant by the coagulation/flocculation method. In the work, two samples of WWB were studied. The first sample was isolated from the wastewater by its evaporation at room temperature first and then at 60°C for 48 h. The second sample was extracted by the coagulation/flocculation process of the wastewater with the developed hybrid coagulant, representing the polymer complex of the composite coagulant based on polyaluminium chloride and high-molecular polyethylenimine. Characterisation was performed using Pyrolysis-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR). The waste biomass contained high-molecular lignin and hemicellulose substances and represented a finely dispersed powder. It was hydrophobic and was characterised by enhanced thermal stability. To minimise the negative effect of polymer wastes on the environment, recycled polypropylene as a polymer matrix was used with the hybrid filler in fabricating WPC samples. The presence of the coagulated WWB in the hybrid filler composition positively affects the mechanical properties, water uptake, and dimensional stability of the composite samples. This behaviour of the waste biomass suggests its potential to act as a compatibiliser, enhancing interfacial adhesion within the composite system.

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