Influence From the Sequence for the Mixture of PP-MA on the Properties of PP and Banana Fiber Composite

This work analyzed the influence from the sequence of mixture for the composite of polypropylene (PP) with 10% by volume of banana fiber (FB) using maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene (PP-MA) as the coupling agent. The thermal, mechanical, water absorption and morphology of the composites were characterized. Three different sequences were used to mix: the processing of all components together (PP + PP-MA + FB), extrusion of PP / PP-MA and after grinding, the mixture was processed with FB ((PP / PP MA) + FB), and the mixture of PP-MA with FB followed by extrusion of the composite with PP (PP + (PP-MA + FB)). The composites showed higher thermal stability and lower percent crystallinity than the pure PP, regardless of the sequence of mixing. It was found that the mixture of PP + PP-MA + FB processed once had a higher impact resistance. The composites modified with PP-MA, regardless of the sequence of mixture used, showed higher modulus and lower water absorption than the composite without coupling agent. For the tensile strength and modulus of elasticity no significant changes were observed. The images from scanning electron microscopy indicated that FB had higher adhesion for the composites with PP-MA, especially for composition PP + (PP-MA + FB).