Physical and Mechanical Properties of Wood-Plastics Composites: Effect of Types and Contents of Wood Flour

Abstract

Wood flour/high density polyethylene (HDPE) composites were prepared by an internal mixer and a compression molding, respectively. The HDPE composites were mixed with four types of wood flour at various contents with and without coupling agent. Polyethylene grafted maleic anhydride (PE-g-MA) was used as a coupling agent. The effects of type (hardwood and softwood), content (0, 30, 60, 80 wt%), and particle size (large and small) of wood flour on the mechanical properties, physical properties, and morphological properties of wood flour/HDPE composites were investigated. The results showed that the large particle size of wood flour provided better mechanical properties than the small particle size. The use of hardwood as a filler in HDPE resulted in the HDPE composites with higher flexural strength and lower water absorption than softwood. The flexural modulus of the wood flour composites was increased with filler loading when PE-g-MA was used as a coupling agent.