Technological watch

As the demand for plastics only increases, new methods are required to economically and sustainably increase plastic usage without landfill and environmental accumulation. In addition, the use of biofillers is encouraged as a way to reduce the cost of the final resin by incorporating agricultural and industrial waste by-products, such as rice hulls and coffee chaff to further reduce waste being sent to landfills. Crystalline poly(ethylene terephthalate) (CPET) is a resin commonly used for microwave and ovenable food packaging containers that have not been fully explored for recycling. In this article, we investigate how the incorporation of biofillers at 5% wt. and 10% wt. impacts critical polymer properties. The thermal and mechanical properties were not significantly altered with the presence of rice hulls or coffee chaff in the polymer matrix at 5% wt. loading, but some reduction in melt temperature, thermal stability, and maximum stress and strain was more noticed at 10% wt. The complex viscosity was also reduced with the introduction of biofillers. The levels of heavy metals of concern, such as Cd, Cr, and Pb, were below the regulatory limits applicable in the United States and Europe. Additional studies are suggested to improve the performance of CPET/biofiller blends by pre-treating the biofiller and using compatibilizers.