Abstract
Mitigation of the environmental burden associated with indiscriminate disposal of post-consumer low density polyethylene (LDPE) packaging material is receiving attention in recent times. There is a need to search for alternative reuse of the accumulating plastic wastes constituting pollutants in our environment. This work involves the preparation and evaluation of the bio-composite samples from post-consumer low density polyethylene water sachets and parinari fruits shell. Biocomposite samples of filler percentages 10, 20 and 30% were produced. The mechanical properties of the samples were determined as function of filler content and particle size according to ASTM standards and confirmed with SEM. The samples had desirable hardness strength of 4568.9 N/mm2 and desirable biodegradability for 30% filler weight of particle size 4 mm. The biocomposite samples exhibited desirable impact (51.75 kJ/m2), tensile (10.02) and flexural strength (18.23 N/mm2) with the 10% weight samples. The findings in this study suggest that post-consumer LDPE wastes can be valorized by conversion to biocomposites using biomass wastes such as parinari shell as cheap value-addition material, providing a cheap potential waste management method for solving the global plastic waste crisis.
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