Improvement of Electrical and Mechanical Properties of PLA/PBAT Composites Using Coconut Shell Biochar for Antistatic Applications

Biochar-based environment-friendly polymer composites are suitable substitutes for conventional non-biodegradable polymer composites. In this work, we developed polylactic acid (PLA)/polybutylene adipate-co-terephthalate (PBAT)/biochar (BC) composites with improved mechanical and electrical properties for antistatic applications. Coconut shell biochar was obtained through the pyrolysis of coconut shell in an inert atmosphere, and characterised using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), to investigate the morphology and structural properties. The biochar was converted to powder form, sieved to reduce the particle size (≤30 μm diameters), and melt-mixed with PLA and PBAT to form composites. The composites were extruded to produce 3D printing filaments and, eventually, 3D-printed tensile specimens. The tensile strength and tensile modulus of the 3D-printed PLA/PBAT/BC (79/20/1) composite with 1 wt% of biochar improved by 45% and 18%, respectively, compared to those of PLA/PBAT (80/20). The interfacial interaction between the biochar and polymer matrix was strong, and the biochar particles improved the compatibility of the PLA and PBAT in the composites, improving the tensile strength. Additionally, the electrical resistivity of the composite did reduce with the addition of biochar, and PLA/PBAT/BC (70/20/10) showed the surface resistivity of ~1011 Ω/sq, making it a suitable material for antistatic applications.