Studies on Ramie cellulose microfibrils reinforced cassava starch composite: influence of microfibrils loading

Abstract

Composites were fabricated from Ramie cellulose microfibrils (RCMF) with cassava starch as matrix and glycerol as a plasticizer. Different composites were fabricated with microfibrils loadings of 0, 2, 4, 8, and 10 wt%. The Particle Size Analyzer results show the average size of RCMF as 1.573 μm. The addition of RCMF considerably influenced the physical, crystalline, thermal, and tensile properties of composites. The addition of RCMF enhanced the crystallinity index (CI) from 32% to 36.67%. Thermogravimetric analysis and tensile test results showed improvement in thermal stability and tensile strength of composite up to 6 wt% microfibrils addition.

Keywords

• cassava starch
• ramie cellulose microfibrils
• thermal stability
• tensile strength