Degradation characteristics of the pineapple leaf fibre reinforced green composite developed by injection moulding under different environmental conditions

Abstract

The present study examines the mechanical and morphological characteristics of a green composite reinforced with pineapple leaf fiber (PLF) under different environmental conditions. PLF underwent chemical treatment at optimal conditions, using a 1% w/v sodium carbonate solution for 6 hours, to produce an environmentally friendly pineapple leaf fiber (PLF)/polylactic acid (PLA)-based composite via injection molding. The optimal injection settings of 165℃ (melting temperature), 50 mm/sec (injection speed), and 110 bars (injection pressure) to produce the PLF/PLA composite. The PLF/PLA composite was developed with a fiber loading of 20% and a length of 3 mm. The produced PLF/PLA composites were then exposed to a variety of environmental conditions, including water, soil, refrigeration, and room temperature. The impact of these diverse conditions on the mechanical properties (tensile, flexural, compression, and shear) was scientifically observed for four-week. Additionally, the morphology of the fractured specimens was assessed using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The contact angle measurement was conducted to assess the hydrophilic characteristics of the PLF/PLA green composite. There has been a lack of comprehensive research on the effects of different environmental conditions on the mechanical, wettability, and morphological properties of green composites derived from PLF/PLA. Thus, in this study, emphasis is given for investigating the effect of various environmental conditions on the mechanical properties of PLF/PLA injection-molded green composite. The composite material demonstrated the highest water absorption and swelling thickness at 6.45% and 5.51%, respectively, in comparison to the dry PLF/PLA samples. The green composite of PLF/PLA demonstrated excellent mechanical performance under ambient conditions compared to other environmental conditions. The PLF/PLA composite displayed a peak contact angle of 83.26° when subjected to soil burial conditions. On the contrary, the initial samples of the PLF/PLA composite displayed the minimum contact angle of 56.72°.