One-Step Twin-Screw Extrusion Process to Fibrillate Deep Eutectic Solvent-Treated Wood to Be Used in Wood Fiber-Polypropylene Composites
Hesam Taheri, Maiju Hietala, Terhi Suopajärvi, Henrikki Liimatainen, Kristiina Oksman
Abstract
Bio-based wood materials are preferable for composites because of their sustainability, but adequately dispersing wood fibers in polymers can be difficult and costly. Our approach was to pretreat the wood with a green solvent system, allowing the composite to be extruded in a single step, simplifying the process, and reducing the overall cost. This study investigates the fibrillation of untreated wood sawdust (W) and deep eutectic solvent-treated wood sawdust (DESW) using a one-step twin-screw extrusion (TSE) process. The results of the analysis of wood fractions and optical microscopy confirmed that the one-step extrusion process resulted in fibrillation of both treated and untreated wood material. The width of the original wood particles was reduced by more than 99% after a one-step TSE for both untreated and DES-treated wood. The size reduction of the DESW was slightly greater than that of the untreated wood, and fibrillation was further confirmed by rheological analysis. The fibrillated wood was then compounded with polypropylene (PP) to produce a wood fiber-polypropylene composite with 50 wt % wood content. The elastic modulus of both untreated and treated extruded composites was higher than that of neat PP. The tensile strength and strain at break for the DESW-PP composite slightly increased in comparison to the untreated W-PP composite. Furthermore, DES treatment of wood resulted in a darker color and increased hydrophobicity of the material.