Chemical, morphological, and mechanical analysis of rice husk/post-consumer polyethylene composites

Composites were obtained from post-consumer high-density polyethylene (PE) reinforced with different concentrations of rice husk. PE and rice husk were chemically modified to improve their compatibility in composite preparation. Rice husk was mercerized with a NaOH solution and acetylated. The chemically modified fibers were characterized by FTIR and 13C NMR spectroscopy. The composites were prepared by extrusion of modified and unmodified materials containing either 5 or 10 wt.% fibers. The morphology of the obtained materials was analyzed by SEM. The chemical modification of the fiber surface was found to improve its adhesion with matrix. Flexural and impact tests demonstrated that PE/rice husk composites present improved mechanical performance comparatively to the pure polymer matrix, on the contrary no benefit is observed in the tensile strength over the pure PE.