A study of the effect of acetylation and propionylation surface treatments on natural fibres

Recently, the incorporation of lignocellulosic materials as reinforcing agents or as fillers in polymer composites has received an increased attention. Although natural fibres have a number of advantages over glass fibres, the strong polar character of their surface is a limiting factor, as compatibility with strongly apolar thermoplastic matrices is very low. Such problems of incompatibility may be overcome with fibre pre-treatments, which can...