Extrusion of Shrimp Shell - Polylactic Acid Composites: Dataset for the Impact of Surfactants on Morphology and Thermal Properties

Shrimp shell waste obtained from Louisiana Gulf shrimp (Litopenaeus setiferus) was heat-treated at varying temperatures and ground into a powder by ball-milling. The powder was used with and without surface treatment with maleic anhydride or stearic acid to form shrimp shell - polylactic acid (PLA) composite granules by solution processing and mechanical grinding. These granules were used as feedstock for the extrusion of composite filaments. The dataset shows the thermal properties of the shrimp shells and the presence of covalent bonding for surface treatment with maleic anhydride. The thermal properties of the composite granules and the influence of the use of surfactants on the morphology, density, and die swell of the extruded filaments are also collected to assess their use as a manufacturing material. The database is organized into five folders. The folder "Filament Weight and Diameter" contains .xlsx files containing the weight and diameter of five specimens of the extruded filaments for each surface treatment. "FTIR" contains an .xlsx file with data for the FTIR spectra of shrimp shells with and without surface treatment with maleic anhydride. Optical images in .tiff format of the ball-milled shrimp powder at 10x, 20x, and 40x magnification are found in the folder "Optical Microscopy". "Photos" contains digital photos in .tiff format for the dried shrimp, ball-milled shrimp, and extruded filament for each surface treatment. Lastly, the folder "TGA-DSC" contains TGA and DSC data for the raw shrimp shells and the composite granules.