High strength wood flour composites based on tung oil-polyurethanes

M.I. ARANGUREN; U. CASADO; N.E. MARCOVICH; M.A.MOSIEWICKI

Salt Lake City, UT, USA

Congreso; 237th ACS National Meeting; 2009

ACS

Bio- based microcomposites with excellent interface particle-polymer and uncommon high deformation at break and strength were prepared from wood flour (0 to 30 wt.%) and a tung oil based-polyurethane. Dynamic-mechanical and mechanical properties were measured and analyzed as a function of the WF content. Storage modulus, tensile modulus and strength increased with the WF content in the material. It is remarkable that the tensile modulus more tripled with the addition of 30 wt.% WF, with little reduction of deformation at break. Moreover, samples with up to 15 %wt of WF showed even higher ultimate deformation than the matrix. SEM micrographs, indicates excellent compatibility between wood flour and polyurethane matrix. Quite unusually, the addition of wood flour had also an important beneficial effect on impact properties; impact strength increased 70% with the addition of 30 wt.% of wood flour.