(157d) Green-solvent Assisted Processing (GSAP) of Polylactic Acid Nanocomposites with Hybrid Cellulose Fibers

Hybrid fiber-reinforced polymer composites (HFRPCs) are materials in which a particular polymer matrix is reinforced with more than one reinforcing materials. HFRPCs are multifunctional materials that bear more than one characteristic benefit. In this study, hybrid cellulose fibers, e.g., pulp fiber (PF) and cellulose nanofibril (CNF), were used for reinforcing polylactic acid (PLA), a popular material for extrusion-based additive manufacturing (EAM), because of their relatively low-cost, abundance, and renewability. The HFRPCs were produced with varying ratios between PF and CNF at a fixed total fiber loading of 20 wt.% to investigate the effect of the fiber composition on the composite tensile and physical performances. HFRPCs displayed improved CNF dispersion, increased tensile performances, and heat deflection temperature, compared to single-reinforcement FRPCs. In addition, a demonstrative print of EAM of a recycle bin using one of the developed formulations was implemented.