Effect of Coal Structure on Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Coal Filled Soy Protein Composites

Using different rank coals as filler, coal-soy protein isolate (SPI) composites were prepared by compression molding processing using glycerol as plasticizer. The structure of the coals used were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), ultimate analysis, and surface functional group analysis. The effects of coal structure on the mechanical properties, water resistance, and thermal properties were investigated. The results showed that, in different rank coals, the atomic ratio of oxygen to carbon, carboxylic acid groups, phenolic hydroxyl groups, lactone bonds, and aliphatic chains decreased with coal rank. The strength, water resistance, and glass transition temperature of coal-SPI composites decreased with coal rank. Lower ran coal filler with more reactive functional groups caused the composites strong but brittle. While, higher rank coals provide poor mechanical properties for the composites.