Effects of UV-accelerated weathering and natural weathering conditions on anti-fungal efficacy of wood/PVC composites doped with propylene glycol-based HPQM

This work studied the mechanical, physical and weathering properties and anti-fungal efficacy of polyvinyl chloride(PVC) and wood flour/polyvinyl chloride composites(WPVC). 2-hydroxypropyl-3-piperazinyl-quinoline carboxylic acid methacrylate (HPQM) in propylene glycol was used as an anti-fungal agent. Propylene glycol-based HPQM was doped in neat PVC and in WPVC containing 50 and 100 pph wood (WPVC-50 and WPVC-100). The flexural properties of PVC decreased when propylene glycol-based HPQM was added. However, adding this component did not affect the flexural properties of WPVC. Fungal growth inhibition test and dry weight technique were used for evaluation of anti-fungal effectiveness. Aspergillus niger was used as a testing fungus. Adding propylene glycol-based HPQM to WPVC-100 led to the most effective anti-fungal performance. Wood flour acted as an anti-fungal promoter for the WPVC composites. The optimal dosages of propylene glycol-based HPQM in PVC, WPVC-50, and WPVC-100 were 50000, 15000, and 10000 ppm, respectively. UV-accelerated weathering aging and natural weathering conditions were found to affect the flexural properties of PVC and WPVC. The change in the anti-microbial performance of WPVC under natural weathering were slower than those under UV-accelerated weathering aging. The anti-microbial evaluation indicated that the samples doped with less than 20000 ppm propylene glycol-based HPQM had a more pronounced effect than the ones doped with higher dosages

Enhancing anti-microbial properties of wood-plastic composites produced from timber and plastic wastes

Considering the resource waste and environmental burden for timber and plastic materials ending up at landfills, this study proposed upcycling wood and plastic waste into value-added wood-plastic composites (WPCs), complying with the standard requirements of flexural strength, thickness swelling, water absorption and thermal insulation. Biological deterioration is a major concern of WPCs. Bacterial survival, fungal attack and algal growth of bactericide-treated WPCs were holistically analysed. Melamine resin was adopted for impregnating anti-microbial agents on the surface. All the agents showed excellent bactericidal rate (Escherichia coli), yet poly-diallyl-dimethyl-ammonium chloride (PolyDADMAC) and silver had the lowest minimum inhibitory concentrations. In terms of weight loss and strength reduction due to fungal decay (Coriolus versicolor), PolyDADMAC, silver and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) imparted the highest resistance on the WPCs. Moreover, PolyDADMAC and copper provided the most protection against algal growth (Chlorella vulgaris), and the former presented durable inhibitory effect. This study presents a value-added solution to wood/plastic waste recycling.Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering2016-2017 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalbcr