Journal of Applied Polymer Science· 2026Q2
Light‐Weight Sustainable Composite From Virgin and Recycled Polypropylene Blends and Biocarbon for Automotive Part Application
- 0citations
- Q2SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
A new composite blend of virgin polypropylene (PP), recycled PP (rPP) at a 50/50 ratio, 24 wt% biocarbon (BC), and 3 wt% PP-g-MA (MAPP) achieves a density below 1.0 g/cm³ (0.977 g/cm³) while increasing tensile and flexural moduli by 36% and 33%, respectively.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Key points
- A 50/50 virgin/recycled PP blend with 24 wt% biocarbon and 3 wt% PP-g-MA achieved a density of 0.977 g/cm³.
- Tensile and flexural moduli increased by 36% and 33%, respectively, compared to the base PP/rPP blend.
- Thermal stability improved, with T10 increasing by 33°C and HDT by 44%.
- Biocarbon acted as a nucleating agent, increasing crystallinity by 47% in the uncompatibilized composite.
- The composite reached 67%-82% of the theoretical upper bound for modulus reinforcement predicted by the Guth-Smallwood model.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
ABSTRACT This work develops lightweight, sustainable PP/rPP/biocarbon composites targeting automotive applications. Virgin PP was blended with automotive recycled PP (rPP) at 70/30 and 50/50 ratios; the 50PP/50rPP blend exhibited the highest impact strength (31.54 J/m) with acceptable stiffness and was selected as the composite matrix. Incorporation of 24 wt% waste paper/plastic‐derived biocarbon (BC) and 3 wt% PP‐g‐MA (MAPP) into the 50/50 blend increased tensile and flexural moduli by 36% and 33%, while maintaining density below 1.0 g/cm 3 (0.977 g/cm 3 ), thus maintaining a favorable stiffness‐to‐weight ratio. Thermal stability was significantly improved: T 10 increased by 33°C in the compatibilized BC composite compared to the 50PP/50rPP blend, and HDT increased by 44%. Biocarbon acted as a nucleating agent, increasing crystallinity by 47% in the uncompatibilized composite. The Guth‐Smallwood model predicted a nearly two‐fold increase in tensile and flexural moduli at a BC volume fraction of 0.19; experimentally, the BC composites reached ~67%–82% of this theoretical upper bound, indicating effective but non‐ideal reinforcement due to residual agglomeration and interfacial defects. The PP/rPP/BC system demonstrates low‐density, high stiffness, thermally stable composites suitable for automotive components such as dashboards while valorizing waste streams and reducing dependence on virgin fossil‐based polymers.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 2026 · DOI ↗
Continue with a free account
Ask the paper: 3 free questions a day about this paper; save it, get its citation, new summaries every day for your field. Takeaways are Premium.
Continue free on the webSign in with Google or Apple; no card needed. You come back to this paper.
On your phone:
Field: Polymers and Plastics
Polymers and PlasticsMaterials Science