Biocomposite
Biocomposites or biocomposites are composites with a biogenic component. Three variants are possible:
- Composites made of natural fibers and traditional polymers and other matrix materials,
- Composites made of synthetic fibers and biopolymers and
- Composites made from natural fibers and biopolymers .
Biocomposites have been used since the end of the 20th century and have recently been used increasingly for industrial applications. Above all come natural fiber composites and the so-called wood plastic composites used, the advantages are of natural fibers compared to traditional reinforcement and fillers advantage. In addition to their sustainability and the associated independence from fossil fuels, these are their CO 2 neutrality, but also their physical properties such as their low density and high strength and rigidity.
In addition to petroleum-based polymers such as polypropylene and polyethylene or epoxy resins , biopolymers have also been increasingly used as matrix material in recent years . Above all, the polylactide (PLA) based on corn starch should be mentioned , but resins or starch made from palm oil are also used. These materials have several other advantages compared to natural fiber-reinforced petroleum-based polymers. As a rule, they are completely biodegradable and their production costs, with the exception of the amount of energy used in the production process, are independent of the oil price. In addition, they have a significantly better CO 2 balance. These materials can also be used in biomedical applications or in contact with food.
literature
- Amar K. Mohanty, Manjusri Misra, Lawrence T. Drzal (Eds.): Natural fibers, biopolymers, and biocomposites , Taylor & Francis Group, Boca Raton, FL 2005, ISBN 084931741X
- KL Pickering (Ed.): Properties and performance of natural-fiber composites , Woodhead Publishing Limited, Cambridge, England, 2008, 1st edition, ISBN 9781845692674
- PA Fowler, JM Hughes & RM Elias: Review Biocomposites: technology, environmental credentials and market forces , Journal of the Science of the Food and Agriculture Issue 86, 2006, pp. 1781-1789
- Bioplastics and natural fiber reinforced plastics (PDF; 6.1 MB), Plastververarbeitung 07/2011
- Reinforcing plastics with natural fibers (PDF; 1.3 MB), 2012
- Wood-plastic composites (PDF; 871 kB), 04/2012