The prioritization of agroindustry fiber wastes as raw materials in development of composites has become a challenge to obtain higher value-added products with targeted applications. In this study, natural fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composites were elaborated using two fiber sizes (605 μm and 633 μm) of oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) and acrylic thermoplastic resin. In doing so, resin and fibers were mixed at room temperature by maintaining filler content of 42 wt. % for all formulations. In addition, thermomechanical compression moulding was used as composite manufacturing process at four processing temperatures (80, 100, 120, and 140°C). All formulations were subsequently exposed to salt fog spray aging for 330 hours. The effects of accelerated aging process on mechanical, spectrophotometric, and thermogravimetric characteristics were studied. On the whole, results have shown feasibility to use a facile method to elaborate composites based on waterborne acrylic matrix and OPEFB fibers. After salt spray testing, it was observed detectable levels of Aspergillus spp. of fungi in all samples, as a result of phylogenetic organization of microbial activity. Tensile behavior of composites was significantly influenced by processing temperature and fiber size. In broad terms, their overall mechanical properties were improved by the increase of temperature. Additionally, infrared spectroscopy results showed important bands mainly associated to biodegradation of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. On the other hand, two degradation stages were mainly identified in thermogravimetric evaluation. Noteworthy, aging had no significant effect on the thermal properties of composites.
El deterioro prematuro de las capas retardantes de las fisuras reflejas, ocasiona reiteradas tareas de mantenimiento en las capas de rehabilitación colocadas sobre ellas, generando incrementos en los costos de conservación de los pavimentos. En búsqueda de mejorar esta situación, se han interpuesto geogrillas y geosintéticos en dichas capas, implicando mayores costos, que en algunos proyectos, puede resultar prohibitivo. Se genera así la necesidad de mejorar las capas arena – asfalto normalmente utilizadas en estas tareas, como una de las alternativas más competitivas. Es por ello que se plantea como hipótesis que las capas arena – asfalto con alto contenido de polvo de neumáticos fuera de uso (NFU) presentarán mejores características elásticas y resistencia a fatiga, en conjunto con la capa de rehabilitación colocada por encima, dando por resultado una mayor vida útil del sistema. Por esto el objetivo planteado es estudiar la respuesta bajo solicitación dinámica de mezclas asfálticas retardantes de la fisuración refleja elaboradas con asfaltos fuertemente modificado con polvo de NFU y su comparación con sistemas convencionales.
In recent years, the use of oil palm wastes has been an interesting approach for the development of sustainable polymer matrix composites. Nevertheless, the water absorption behavior of these materials is one of the most critical factors for their performance over time. In this study, the water uptake characteristics of acrylic thermoplastic matrix composites reinforced separately with oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) and oil palm kernel shell (OPKS) were evaluated through immersion test in distilled water. The specimens of both composites were manufactured using the compression molding technique at three temperatures (80, 100, and 120 °C) using different particle sizes (425–600 and 600–850 µm). The composites, before and after the absorption test, were characterized by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetry, and scanning electron microscopy. The evaluation was complemented by the application of the Fickian diffusion model. Overall results showed that water absorption capacity decreased at a higher processing temperature and a larger particle size. In particular, it was observed that the type of reinforcement also influenced both water absorption and diffusivity. OPKS/acrylic and OPEFB/acrylic composites reached a maximum absorption of 77 and 86%, with diffusivities of 7.3 × 10−9 and 15.2 × 10−9 m2/min, respectively. Experimental evidence suggested that the absorption mechanism of the composites followed a non-Fickian model (n < 1.0).
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