Effect of chemical modification on the performance of biodegradable jute yarn-Biopol® composites

Jute yarn-Biopol(R) composites are prepared by hot-press moulding technique. Jute yarns of two varieties (7.36 lbs/spy and 11.86 lbs/spy) are used for composite fabrications. Effects of temperature, yarn amount, chemical modification like dewaxing (defatting), alkali treatment, graft copolymerization and orientation of yarn winding on the performance of resulting composites have been investigated. The mechanical properties like tensile strength, bending strength, impact strength and bending-E-modulus increased substantially in comparison to pure Biopol(R) as a result of reinforcement with jute yarns. The most remarkable observations of our present investigations include more than 150% enhancement in tensile strength, impact strength, bending-E-modulus and more than 50% enhancement in bending strength of the resulting composites as compared to pure Biopol(R) sheets. Amount of jute yarn, chemical modifications and measurement of mechanical properties on the direction of winding of yarns contribute significantly to the mechanical properties of resulting composites. (C) 2000 Kluwer Academic Publishers.