Influence of Surface Treatment on Tensile Properties of Low-Density Polyethylene/Cellulose Woven Biocomposites: A Preliminary Study

Cellulose woven (CW) was surface treated by means of hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide surfactant (HTAB) in aqueous solution medium at elevated temperature. The parameters of the surface treatment that have been studied are HTAB concentration (0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0 wt%) and treatment time (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 h). The untreated and treated CW filled low-density polyethylene (LDPE) biocomposites were prepared via compression molding technique. The tensile testing results of LDPE/CW biocomposites demonstrated that the optimum HTAB concentration for treatment of CW in 1 h was 0.4 wt%, while the optimum treatment time at 0.4 wt% HTAB was 2 h. The SEM (scanning electron microscope) images indicated that there is no significant difference in the morphology of the untreated and treated CW; however the morphology of the LDPE/treated CW biocomposite showed better interfacial adhesion as compared with the untreated ones. The FTIR (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) spectra revealed that the presence of HTAB on the surface of treated CW and also revealed the existence of intermolecular interactions between LDPE and treated CW. In summary, HTAB could potentially be used as a treatment agent for modifying the surface of CW and consequently improved the tensile properties of LDPE/CW biocomposites.