Study on Mechanical Behavior of Wood Dust Filled Polymer Composites

Abstract

The use of wood dust filled polymer composites has been considerably studied both from a scientific and a commercial point of view over the last decades, as these materials are particularly attractive for their reduced environmental impact and the globally pleasant aesthetical properties. Wood dusts are attractive fillers for thermoplastic polymers, mainly because of their low cost, low density and high-specific properties. They are biodegradable and non-abrasive during processing etc. Although there are several reports in the literature which discuss the mechanical behavior of wood/polymer composites, however, very limited work has been done on effect of wood dust types on mechanical behaviour polymer composites. Against this background, the present research work has been undertaken, with an objective to explore the potential of wood dust types as a reinforcing material in polymer composites and to investigate its effect on the mechanical behaviour of the resulting composites. The present work thus aims to develop this new class of natural fibre based polymer composites with different wood types and to analyse their mechanical behaviour by experimentation. Finally the morphology of fractured surfaces is examined by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM).