Surface Modification of Wood Fiber and Preparation of a Wood Fiber-Polypropylene Hybrid by In situ Polymerization

The surface functionalization of wood fiber was performed by chemical modification with bi-functional organo-silane 7-octenyldimethylchlorosilane (7-ODMCS) and mono-functional organo-silane n-octyldimethylchlorosilane (n-ODMCS). The chloro functionality of organo-silane modifiers was utilized to functionalize wood fiber. The resulting modified fiber was characterized for thermal stability (thermal gravimetric analysis), presence of organic groups on the surface (Fourier-transform IR), for particle size (microscopy) and for its hydrophobicity by dispersing in toluene. The modified fiber was used for in situ polymerization of propylene to obtain a wood fiber polypropylene hybrid. The terminal olefin functionality of 7-ODMCS was utilized for co-polymerization of propylene during in situ polymerization. The wood fiber polypropylene hybrid samples were characterized for thermal analysis. In order to confirm the co-polymerization of propylene in 7-ODMCS modified fiber during in situ polymerization, n-ODMCS modified fiber having no olefin functionality was also used in in situ polymerization.