Biochar/polypropylene composites: A study on the effect of pyrolysis temperature on crystallization kinetics, crystalline structure, and thermal stability

Abstract The crystallization behavior of polyolefins continues to gain much attention for the prediction of suitable processing conditions. This study aims to understand the influence of biochar (BC) particles on the crystallization behavior of the selected semi-crystalline polypropylene (PP). For this purpose, BC samples were prepared from waste biomass at various pyrolysis temperature. The prepared BC samples were used to fabricate PP composites via melt processing technique. The crystallization behavior of these composites was studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) calorimetry and validated using Avrami analysis in a non-isothermal conditions. It was observed that BC particles act as nucleating agents and accelerate the overall rate of crystallization. Avrami theory analysis indicated that the addition of BC particles provides polypropylene (PP) composites with a higher crystallization rate, i.e. about one order of magnitude higher than the neat PP. The results of the TGA analysis showed that the BC particles enhanced the thermal stability of the BC/PP composites, and is up to 80 °C higher than the neat PP sample.