Effect of Surface Treatment on Interfacial and Properties of Water Hyacinth Fiber Reinforced Poly (Lactic Acid) Composites

Surface treatment of water hyacinth fiber (WHF) was investigated as a mean of improving interfacial of WHF reinforced poly (lactic acid) (PLA) composites. Fiber was treated with sodium hydroxide 15% w/v at 85 degrees C for 3 h. The composite materials were processed using internal melt mixer and compression molding machine. The weight content of fibervaried from 5 to 25% w/w.The mechanical and thermal properties of pure PLA and composites were compared using universal testing machine, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetricanalysis (TGA). The best mechanical properties of composite were achieved at fiber mass content of 20% w/w in this study, which showed an increase oftensile modulus by 21.6% compared to those of pure PLA. The high tensile modulus but low elongation at break indicates that this material exhibits brittle behavior. The results of TGA and DSC experiments indicated that the addition of fiber enhanced the thermal stability of the composites and WHF can act as a nucleating agent for PLA crystallites. The morphology, evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), indicated that a uniform dispersion of fiber in the PLA matrix existed. Alkali treatment of fiber increased the interfacial bonding strength and the wettability of the fiber by PLA leading to the enhancement in mechanical properties of the composites.