Effects of Kenaf and Rice Husk on Thermal Properties of Kenaf/CaCO3/HDPE and Rice Husk/CaCO3/HDPE Hybrid Composites
In this research, rice husk and kenaf fiber were compounded with calcium carbonate (CaCO3)/high density polyethylene (HDPE) composite.Different loadings of up to 30 parts of 50 mesh sizes of rice husk particulate and kenaf fiber were compounded using twin-screw extruder with fixed 30 parts of CaCO3 fillerto produce hybrid composites of rice husk/CaCO3/HDPE and kenaf/CaCO3/HDPE.Compounded hybrid composites were prepared and tested for thermal properties. The thermal stability of the components was examined by thermogravimetricanalysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetric (DSC). The DSC results showed a slightly changes in melting temperature (Tm), crystallization temperature (Tc) and the degree of crystallinity (Xc) with addition of natural fiber. TGA indicates thermal stability of hybrid composite filled with kenaf or rice husk is better than unfilledCaCO3/HDPE composite.