Effect of alkaline-ultrasound treatment on oil palm empty fruit bunch to produce composite / Goh Guat Bin
Material type:
TextPublication details: Kuantan, Pahang : UMP, 2013Description: xii, 71 p. : ill. ; 30 cm. + 1 CD-ROMISBN: - THE0002444(Local)
| Item type | Current library | Call number | Copy number | Status | Date due | Barcode | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Final Year Report
|
UMPLIB GAMBANG | TA418.9.C6 G64 2013 rs Bc. (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | 1 | Not for loan | 0000074609 | ||
Final Year Report
|
UMPLIB GAMBANG | CD 7004 | TA418.9.C6 G64 2013 rs Bc. (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | 1 | Not for loan | 0000074610 |
Project paper (Bachelor of Chemical Engineering) -- Universiti Malaysia Pahang – 2013
Bibliography : p. 63-69
A wide attention is currently being dedicated to the exploitation of natural fibres in reinforcement for polymer composites. However, poor compatibility occurs between the mainly hydrophobic polymer-matrix and the hydrophilic natural fibres. Hence fibre modification is needed, with the goal of modifying the surfaces of the fibres. Current work is focused on the alkaline-ultrasound treatment of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB). In this project, initially the raw EFB was washed and dried to remove dirt and moisture. It was then followed by alkaline-ultrasound treatment. The mechanical properties of the different single fibres were measured by the tensile strength. Klason lignin method was used to analyse the acid-insoluble lignin content in the fibres; while thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was used to analyse the thermal stability of the fibres. The surface morphology of the treated and untreated fibre has been observed through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) machine. The fibres show significant decrease in the lignin content after treatments. A significant increase in mechanical property of modified fibres with respect to the raw untreated fibres has been observed. The thermal stability of the treated fibre also found to change. With alkaline-ultrasound treatment, the surface of the fibre was observed to have changes with rougher and more porous surface. These findings strongly suggest that alkaline-ultrasound treatment can be used as effective treatment in natural fibres to improve their compatibility with polymer matrix to produce stronger composites.