Mechanical Properties of Recycled Polypropylene Filled with Aluminium Hydroxide

Abstract

The present work aims to study the prospects of the efficient utilization of aluminium hydroxide (Al(OH)3 as a filler for thermoplastic recycled polymer. Recycled polypropylene (rPP) has been used as polymer matrix to prepare composites with different levels (25 and 50 wt.%) of aluminium hydroxide filler. Maleic anhydride-grafted polypropylene (MAPP) coupling agent has also been incorporated into rPP composites to facilitate particle dispersion. MAPP treated composites have shown up to 20% improvement in tensile strength and an increment of up to 33% in tensile modulus as compared to neat rPP prepared at 25 wt.% and 50 wt.% Al(OH)3 filler content, respectively. MAPP surface treatment enhancement of interfacial adhesion between rPP matrix and Al(OH)3 filler is evident through SEM micrographs. Al(OH)3 filler strongly influences the flammability of rPP composites, with a significant reduction in average ignition time. The flame retardancy of MAPP treated rPP composite surpasses untreated rPP composite, despite the insignificant amount of difference between the two.