Wood-Plastic Composites Made of Recycled Materials

Abstract

This paper reports the importance of the manufacturing of wood plastic composites (WPCs) due to their numerous and excellent strength properties, like workability and decay resistance. The wood-plastic composites are viewed as environmentally friendly alternatives to pressure-treated wood because of their superior weather and decay resistance and virtually unlimited life. The manufacturers of experimental composites have been using recycled high density polyethylene (HPDE), polypropylene and old newspaper fiber. These composite panels are made through air-forming and hot pressure, and exhibit excellent dimensional stability as compared to that made from virgin HDPE. We will demonstrate the importance of wood in the plastic industries as a low cost filling and we will detail the mechanic properties and the thermal stability of the thermoplastic matrix, which confers a bigger rigidity when compared to thermoplastic solids. There is a wide variety of thermoplastics, including polystyrene, low and high-density polyethylene, polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride, available for the production of composites, although just a few can be used for WPCs.