Evaluation of Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Artichoke Filled Polypropylene Composites: Influence of Wollastonite Hybridization

Today, plant-fiber-filled polymer composites are used in many applications because of their favorable properties such as low price, renewability, biodegradability and non-toxic characteristics. However, usage of these composites is limited due to their insufficient thermal properties. To overcome this situation, plant fibers can be combined with mineral fillers that improve the thermal performance in polymer composites. In this study, the effect of wollastonite hybridization with artichoke was analyzed. Artichoke and wollastonite particles were used as an organic and an inorganic filler, respectively. Artichoke–polypropylene (PP) composites containing 10, 20 and 30 wt% artichoke particles were manufactured using a high-speed thermokinetic mixer. Based on mechanical results, PP-based hybrid composites containing artichoke and wollastonite particles were fabricated to see the effect of wollastonite hybridization; 3, 5 and 7 wt% wollastonite were added into the artichoke–PP matrix to compare with artichoke–PP composites containing 10 wt% artichoke particles. The storage modulus of artichoke–PP composites increased with increasing artichoke content. The hybrid composites had a higher storage modulus compared with composites containing 10 wt% artichoke. The hybrid composite PP-7A-3W (containing 7 wt% of artichoke and 3 wt% wollastonite) showed the highest storage modulus value. The initial decomposition temperature of PP-3A-7W had the highest value among all composites.