Synthesis of Composite Materials from Waste Fabrics and Plastics

Abstract

The objective of this work is to synthesize an environmentallybenign fiber composite material. This material is made from waste fabrics and plastics. A polypropylene "PP" carpet-waste fabric was used as the candidate reinforcing material due to its good mechanical properties and abundant availability. The matrix material was chosen to be scrap polyethylene "PE". This choice was based on its market availability as a common waste (e.g., bottles, shopping bags, trash bags, etc.) and spatial compatability of its resin molecules with the chosen fabric. The surface compatability between the PP fabric and PE resin was further enhanced by promoting the "wetting" characteristics of the PP via chemical treatment of the fabirc. PP/PE composite panels were fabricated using a conventional compression molding machine and tested for mechanical properties. It was found that the PE/PP composite, with 25% fiber volume fraction, exhibited four fold increase in tensile modulus and tensile strength and 60% increase in flexural modulus when compared with similar properties for pure PE. Furthermore, a practical application for this waste composite was introduced and an economic analysis was performed to demonstrate its merits.