www.ndsu.edu/bioopportunities

Novel, UV-curable Biocomposites incorporating Vegetable Oils and

Natural Plant Fibers

J. Wu, Z.Chen, C. Ulven, D.Wiesenborn, D.Haagenson and J. Espinoza Perez North Dakota State University

Future Work• Seekfunding/cooperationopportunities• Testnaturalgradefibers,fiberloadinglevelsandtheeffectofsurface

treatments• Conductdetailedcompositepropertytests•Studyeffectofvarioussyntheticacrylatesintheresin

Biocompositesarecomposedofabiorenewableresinreinforcedwithnaturalfibers.Thesepromisingmaterialshavethepotentialtobeusedeverywhere,fromtheautomotiveindustrytodrugdeliveryinhumanbonegrafting,andnormallyarethermallycured.Thisultraviolet(UV)-curedapproachreducesproductiontimes,eliminatessolventemissionandallowsforacompletely“green”manufacturingprocessandfinalproduct.

What is “Green Chemistry”?Greenchemistryaimstocreatesustainableandhealth-conscioussolutionsfortoday’sever-increasingtechnologicalneeds.Greenchemistsdevelopsolvent-freeandrenewableproductsthatarelesshazardoustohumanhealthandtheenvironment.Sinceenergyconsumptionisaglobalconcern,greenchemistsalsofocusonprocessesthatuselessenergythanconventionalmeans.

MaterialsThesebiocompositesarecomposedoftwokindsofvegetableoils(AandB,whicharechemicallymodifiedtoimproveUVcurability)andnaturalplantfibers.ThewholecuringprocessusingtheUVlamptakesoneminute!

ConclusionsIncorporatingnaturalfibersintoUV-curablevegetableoil-basedresinsimprovesthestrengthoftheresinbyahugepercentage.Theadditionofasmallamountofsyntheticresincanimprovethesepropertiesevenfurther,buttheeffectivenessofacompletelybiorenewablesystemcanbeseenwhilemaintainingahighbiorenewablecontent.

Benefits•Biodegradableandbiorenewable:naturalmaterialswith75%to95%

biorenewablecontent•Environmentallyfriendly:nosolventsreleasedintotheenvironment•Totally“green”:greenchemistryandgreencuringtechnology•Nothermalconsumption:usesthepoweroflight•Increasedmanufacturingspeed=increasedproductivity•Lowermanufacturingcost:cheaperthansyntheticssuchasfiberglass