Development and Characterization of Polyhydroxybutyrate and Banana Fiber biocomposites

ABSTRACT PHB (Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate) is a biodegradable thermoplastic polymer synthesized by fermentation from renewable materials. It is a polyester composed of elastomers and linear thermoplastics, whose properties are of great scientific and technological interest, is a very rigid and fragile polymer and highly crystalline with barrier properties and chemical resistance to hydrolysis. PHB has industrial processing restricted due to its physical properties. Studies have shown that the use of natural fibers as reinforcement has been an alternative for reducing the cost of production and improving the thermal and mechanical properties of polymeric materials. The banana fiber has been studied as a polymeric reinforcement, and can become a promising alternative, for being highly available, low density, low abrasiveness, non-toxic, and be renewable and biodegradable. The objective of this work was the study of the mechanical properties (tensile strength), thermal properties (thermogravimetric analysis, TGA, and Differential Exploratory Calorimetry, DSC), morphological and fluidity Index of PHB and PHB/banana fiber composites. The fibers were chemically treated to change the contact surface. PHB/FB composites with concentrations of 90/05 and 90/10 (m/m) were prepared. The materials were processed by extrusion and molded in a hydraulic press to make the specimens. The incorporation of the fiber caused a change in the mechanical results of the material. The best results were achieved with the 90/05 (m/m).