APPLICATION OF OIL PALM WOOD FLOUR AS FILLERS IN POLYPROPYLENE

The viability of using oil palm trunk wood flour (OPWF), a by-product of the oil palm industry, as a filler in polypropylene (PP) was studie d. The OPWF was compounded into polypropylene using a Brabender thermo plastics mixer and a twin screw compounder. Torque of PP/OPWF composit e was compared to that of neat polypropylene. The result showed that t he mixing torque of polypropylene increases by adding OPWF filler into it. Test specimens of the PP/OPWF composite at 30% filter content wer e prepared by injection moulding, their mechanical properties evaluate d and compared to a commercial PP/talc composite. The tensil propertie s, flexual modulus, impact strength, and melt flow index of the PP/OPW F composite were decreased only by a small margin when compared to tho se of PP/talc. The PP/OPWF composite, on the other hand, has better he at deflection temperature value than PP/talc. The study shows that OPW F has a good potential to be used as an alternative filter for polypro pylene. The OPWF used in this study was not treated with any coupling agent.