Effect of Rice Straw on the Mechanical and Biodegradability Properties of the Poly (Polyethylene-G-Acrylic Acid)

A polyethylene/acrylic copolymer was synthesized using a grafting technique with benzoyl peroxide as a catalyst and xylene as a solvent. Acrylic acid (AA) was grafted onto polyethylene (PE) in a 1:5 ratio. The resulting grafted copolymer, characterized by FTIR, was blended with rice straw at varying percentages of 3%, 5%, and 7% to produce biodegradable films. The properties of these films in water were evaluated through analyses of viscosity, tensile strength, elongation at break, water contact angle, and solubility. Incorporating rice straw enhanced the grafted copolymer's biodegradability, resulting in increased viscosity, tensile strength, and elongation at break of the films, while reducing the water contact angle and solubility. However, incorporating 7% rice straw in the grafted copolymer-based on PE (1.0%) and AA (5.0%) resulted in increases in viscosity, tensile strength, and elongation at break by 29.5%, 46.1%, and 9.6%, respectively, while reducing the contact angle and biodegradability solubility time at 45°C by 25.8%.