The influences of filler loading on tensile properties and water absorption properties of carbonized sugarcane bagasse filled high density polyethylene (HDPE) composite

This study synthesized carbonized sugarcane bagasse (CSB) filled high density polyethylene (HDPE) composites. The effect of pre-treatment reagent of SB with different concentration of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) was examined. The untreated, treated and carbonized SB were characterized by proximate analysis and functional group analysis. By considering all the characteristics, 7 wt% is the optimum concentration which gave lowest moisture content and highest fixed carbon (FC) content. It was chosen to undergo carbonization process at temperature of 600 °C to produce CSB and used as filler in composites. The filler with different loading was mixed with HDPE via extrusion process. The tensile properties, surface morphology and water absorption behaviour of the bio-composites were evaluated. As filler loading increased, the Young’s modulus was increasing gradually. Meanwhile, the tensile strength and elongation at break were increasing up to 5 wt% but then decreasing as filler content increased due to the formation of filler agglomeration in HDPE matrix. The deterioration of the interfacial adhesion of these composites was confirmed by the SEM observations. The percentage of water absorption is gradually increased with increasing the filler loading. In short, the optimum filler loading at 5 wt% imparts good tensile and water absorption properties of composites.