Eco-Friendly Blends of Recycled PET Copolymers with PLLA and Their Composites with Chopped Flax Fibres.

The structure and properties of blends of a novel polyethylene terephthalate copolymer (COPET) obtained by chemical recycling of commercial PET with high-molar-mass poly-L-lactide (PLLA) are investigated and compared to corresponding composites with chopped flax fibres. The focus is on the morphology at nano- and micro-scales, on the thermal characteristics and on the mechanical behaviour. The blends are immiscible, as evidenced by virtually unchanged glass transition temperatures of the blend components compared to the neat polymers (49 °C for COPET and 63 °C for PLLA by DSC).

Integrated Approach to Eco-Friendly Thermoplastic Composites Based on Chemically Recycled PET Co-Polymers Reinforced with Treated Banana Fibres.

A major societal issue of disposal and environmental pollution is raised by the enormous and fast-growing production of single-use polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles, especially in developing countries. To contribute to the problem solution, an original route to recycle PET in the form of value-added environmentally friendly thermoplastic composites with banana fibres () has been developed at the laboratory scale. Banana fibres are a so far undervalued by-product of banana crops with great potential as polymer reinforcement.