Using Plantain Rachis Fibers and Mopa-Mopa Resin to Develop a Fully Biobased Composite Material

• Published in: Polymers Vol. 16; no. 3; p. 329
• Main Authors: Sánchez Morales, Valeria, Martínez Salinas, Brenda Alejandra, Mina Hernandez, Jose Herminsul, Córdoba Urrutia, Estivinson, Fajardo Cabrera de Lima, Lety Del Pilar, Maturana Peña, Harry, Valadez González, Alex, Ríos-Soberanis, Carlos R, Pérez-Pacheco, Emilio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 25.01.2024
• Subjects: Absorption; Analysis; barniz de pasto; biobased composite material; biocomposite materials; Biomedical materials; Biopolymers; Caustic soda; Chemical processes; Circular economy; Composite materials; Distillation; Distilled water; English plantain; Fibers; Filtration; Grinding; Gums and resins; Identification and classification; Lignocellulose; Mechanical properties; Methods; Moisture; Moisture absorption; Mopa-Mopa resin; Plant fibers; plantain fibers; plantain waste; Plantains; Relative humidity; Resins; Shrubs; Stearic acid; Surface treatment; Tensile properties; Tensile strength; Colombia; Germany; Mopa-Mopa resin; plantain fibers; plantain waste; barniz de pasto; biocomposite materials; biobased composite material
• ISSN: 2073-4360; 2073-4360
• DOI: 10.3390/polym16030329

A completely biobased composite material was developed using a matrix of natural resin extracted from the Mora plant, commonly known as Mopa-Mopa or "Barniz de Pasto", reinforced with fibers extracted from plantain rachis agricultural residues. A solvent process, involving grinding, distillation, filtration, and drying stages, was implemented to extract the resin from the plant bud. To obtain the resin from the plant bud, the vegetable material was ground and then dissolved in a water-alcohol blend, followed by distillation, filtration, and grinding until the powdered resin was ready for use in the preparation of the biocomposite. Likewise, using mechanical techniques, the plantain rachis fibers were extracted and worked in their native condition and with a previous alkalinization surface treatment. Finally, the biocomposite material was developed with and without incorporating stearic acid, which was included to reduce the material's moisture absorption. Ultimately stearic acid was used as an additive to reduce biocomposite moisture absorption. The tensile mechanical results showed that the Mopa-Mopa resin reached a maximum strength of 20 MPa, which decreased with the incorporation of the additive to 12 MPa, indicating its plasticization effect. Likewise, slight decreases in moisture absorption were also evidenced with the incorporation of stearic acid. With the inclusion of rachis plantain fibers in their native state, a reduction in the tensile mechanical properties was found, proportional to the amount added. On the other hand, with the alkalinization treatment of the fibers, the behavior was the opposite, evidencing increases in tensile strength, indicating that the fiber modification improved the interfacial adhesion with the Mopa-Mopa matrix. On the other hand, the evaluation of the moisture absorption of the biocomposite material evidenced, as expected, that the absorption level was favored by the relative humidity used in the conditioning (47, 77, and 97%), which also had an impact on the decrease of the mechanical tensile properties, being this was slightly counteracted by the inclusion of stearic acid in the formulation of the material.