Date palm wood flour as filler of linear low-density polyethylene

The effect of the filler content and the different type of wood flour on the mechanical properties of polyethylene composites filled with an agricultural pruning residue, date palm wood flour (DPWF) was studied. The different types of DPWF were rachis, leaflet and leaf, resulting from that annual pruning of date palm tree. Composites were made at 45%, 60% and 75% by weight wood flour contents. The particle size was 25-40 mesh and Maleic Anhydride modified polyethylene was also added at 2% of total weight of each board. First, the palletized feedstock from DPWF and plastic were provided by a twin screw extruder and then, the compound pellets ground and the final boards were made of them by a hot-press. It was observed that by increasing the filler content, the mechanical properties, flexural strength (MOR) and tensile strength decreased, while the flexural modulus (MOE) increased. The tensile strength did not show significant differences as a function of the filler type while the flexural strength and the flexural modulus of the boards made from leaflet flour, was the highest. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.