Role of maleated coupling agents on the interface adhesion of polypropylene-wood composites

The main accomplishment of compounding wood-flour with thermoplastics is an increase in rigidity and specific strength. Filler-matrix interactions play a key role in the composite performance and the strength of the interface is determined by the nature of the coupling agents employed. The coupling efficiency of maleated polypropylene (PP-MAH) with varying MAH content and melt flow index in polypropylene-wood composites has been investigated. A method based on a simplified single rule of mixtures aiming to compare differences in interface adhesion in the presence of PP-MAH is proposed in terms of relaxation spectra of polypropylene-wood composites obtained by dynamic-mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA). The criterion is ail attempt to determine an adhesion factor as derived from the relative mechanical damping (tan 6) of the composite as a function of the filler content and temperature. Experimental results deviate from model predictions possibly owing to assumptions of wood-flour as a rigid filler as well as neglect of an interphase volume fraction and its damping characteristics. However, good correlations of coupling efficiency and yield properties have been found for wood composites with homopolymer and copolymer matrices within a range of varying wood-flour content and type of coupling agent. Further evidences of improved matrix-filler interactions, wettability, and filler dispersion in the presence of the PP-MAH are observed by scanning electron microscopy.