reinforcements | Natural fi bres


Right: An injection


moulded truck foot rest


produced as part of the Naturtruck


programme in PLA/hemp


bio-composite


During the past year, IWNiRZ has developed a special fi bre treatment for hemp fi bres. This involves the surface treatment of osmotic degummed fi bres combined with silanisation in the presence of two fl ame retardant additives and a plasma treatment. This modifi cation results in a reduction of the fl ammability of the hemp fi bres by 40%


measured by maximum heat release rate (HRR max). The treatment process was scaled up to 20kg of treated fi bres that were pelletized afterwards by Aimplas and project partner, BaVe Badische Faservere- delung, a specialist in the pelletizing of natural fi bres (BaVe is also involved in the HIFIVENT project). Aimplas has continued the development of fl ame and heat resistant PLA/hemp biocomposites using BaVe’s pelletized hemp fi bres and ammonium


polyphosphate fl ame retardant. In order to improve the crystallization rate of the PLA (necessary to achieve the required high heat defl ection temperatures) and to maintain the impact strength of the biocomposites, a combination of bioplasticizer, nucleating agent, and impact modifi er additives were used.


Miguel Angel Valera, Senior Polymeric Researcher at Aimplas, says that the biocomposites it developed fulfi lled the mechanical and HDT requirements of Volvo, showing Charpy impact strength values of 23kJ/m2 and


HDT(B) of 120°C after annealing. The annealing treatment was carried out by heating the parts in a continuous infrared oven for 90s and then leaving them to crystallise at room temperature. The biocomposites were also classifi ed as HB according to the UL94 fl ammability standard. CTAG fi nished and adapted the prototype moulds and


Below: Granules of PLA/hemp biocomposite produced for the NaturTruck project


parts to be used in the interior of the cabin trucks for the Naturtruck biocomposites, and also optimised the injection moulding process. The injectability of the biocomposites was shown to be superior to commercial ABS and ABS/PC blends currently used in the automotive sector, Valera says. Small series of two case studies, a bracket and a foot rest, were injection moulded as


project demonstrators. Compounding equipment producer Steer


believes the day is not far away when jute will fi nd its way into the production of under-the-hood automobile parts such as air intake manifolds, radiator end-caps, fans and shrouds, housing construction materials, and even microwavable cooking containers. Last November, it announced the development and availability of technology to process jute-fi lled polypropylene compounds that promises the ability to replace minerals and fi bres and help reduce product cost, density and carbon footprint, while improving product performance.


Speaking about the advance, Steer founder and Managing Director Babu Padmanabhan said company scientists have developed jute-fi lled PP compounds incorporating up to 50% by weight of jute utilising its co-rotating twin-screw platform technology with special patented fractional-lobe elements. “The new material has formidable advantages – it is strong, fl exible, and heat-resistant, not to mention that it is also an economical, lighter and eco-friendly reinforcing agent for plastics,” he says. “There is a potential for a new sunrise industry to


emerge, creating thousands of jobs, especially in jute rich resource states,” claims Padmanabhan. “Jute polymers, if promoted aggressively by the government and the industry, can have a ripple effect not only on the beleaguered jute sector, but the entire Indian economy by opening up a huge market opportunity for an industry that has historically been low on added value.” India is one of the largest producers of jute in the world.


Click on the links for more information:  www.aschulman.com  www.biobent.com  www.ekotex.pl  www.iwnirz.pl  www.polyone.com  www.softergroup.com  http://algix.com  www.beologic.com  www.fraunhofer.de  www.aimplas.es  www.steerworld.com


46 COMPOUNDING WORLD | March 2016 www.compoundingworld.com


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