A comparative analysis of the hindered amine light stabilizers (HALS) and UV abosrber (UVA) and their respective photostabilizing effect on wood plastic composites (WPCs) are reported in this study. The influence of accelerated weathering on the mechanical properties of the composites and the microscopic morphology of a degraded layer on the cross section and the surface were studied. UV absorbers were more efficient at preventing composite lightening than was UV stabilizer. The amount of whitening decreased with the increase of photostabilizers. With the addition of a UV absorber (Tinuvin360), the tensile modulus and strength of the composites increased slightly. However, the addition of a light stabilizer (Tinuvin770) and a UV absorber decreased the tensile modulus and strength of the composites. After 250 and 500 hr exposure, tensile modulus and strength of the un stabilized and stabilized composites decreased. The tensile strength of UV absorber (Chimassorb81)-stabilized composites was significantly greater than that of control and light stabilizer (Tinuvin770)- and UV absorber (Tinuvin360)-stabilized composites. UV absorber-stabilized samples showed less whitening and photodegradation than control and light stabilizer-stabilized samples.

Nanocomposites with polypropylene/clay/wood flour were prepared by melt blending and injection molding. Thermal, mechanical and morphological properties were characterized. The addition of ballmilled clay, compatibilizer and wood flour significantly improved the thermal stability of the hybrids. The tensile modulus and strength of most hybrids was highly increased with the increased loading of clay, maleated polypropylene (MAPP) and wood flour (WF), compared to the PP/WF hybrids. The tensile modulus and strength of most hybrids were highly increased with the increased loading of ballmilled clay, MAPP and wood flour, compared to the hybrids with PP/WF. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) photomicrographs illustrated the intercalated and partially exfoliated structures of the hybrids with ballmilled clay, MAPP and wood flour.

Polypropylene (PP) composites with wood flour/wax/coupling agent were manufactured by melt compounding and injection molding. The influence of wood flour(WF), wax, and coupling agent on the mechanical and thermal properties of the composites was investigated. The addition of wood flour to neat PP has the higher tensile modulus and strength compared with neat PP. The presence of wax also improved the tensile modulus. At the same loading of PP and WF, the addition of coupling agent highly decreased the tensile modulus, and increased the tensile strength. From thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), the addition of wax improved the thermal stability of the composites in the later stages of degradation. The presence of MAPP and wood flour in turn decreased thermal stabilities of composites. From differential scanning calorimetry analysis (DSC), neither the loading of wax. nor the presence of MAPP has shown significant effect on the thermal transition of composites.

As a part of enhancing the performance of wood-plastic composites (WPC), polypropylene (PP)/ nanoclay (NC)/ wood flour (WF) nanocomposites were prepared using melt blending and injection molding process to evaluate their thermal stability. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was employed to investigate thermal degradation kinetics of the nanocomposites both dynamic and isothermal conditions. Dynamic scans of the TGA showed an increased thermal stability of the nanocomposites at moderate wood flour concentrations (up to 20 phr, percentage based on hundred percent resin) while it decreased with the addition of 30 phr wood flour. The activation energy (Ea) of thermal degradation of nanocomposites increased when nanoclay was added and the concentration of wood flour increased. Different equations were used to evaluate isothermal degradation kinetics using the rate of thermal degradation of the composites, expressed as weight loss (%) from their isothermal TGA curves. Degradation occurred at faster rate in the initial stages of about 60 min., and then proceeded in a gradual manner. However, nanocomposites with wood flour of 30 phr heated at 300℃ showed a drastic difference in their degradation behavior, and reached almost a complete decomposition after 40 min. of the isothermal heating. The degree of decomposition was greater at higher temperatures, and the residual weight of isothermal degradation of nanocomposites greatly varied from about 10 to 90%, depending on isothermal temperatures. The isothermal degradation of nanocomposites also increased their thermal stability with the addition of 1 phr nanoclay and of wood flour up to 20 phr. But, the degradation of PP100/NC1/MAPP3/WF30 nanocomposites with 30 phr wood flour occurs at a faster rate compared to those of the others, indicating a decrease in their thermal stability.

This study was conducted to investigate the removal characteristics of heavy metals and sulfate ion from acid mine drainage by porous zeolite-slag ceramics (ZS ceramics) that was prepared by adding wood flour as pore-foaming agent while calcining the mixtures of natural zeolite and converter slag. The batch test showed that the removal efficiency of heavy metals by pellet-type porous ZS ceramics increased as the particle size of wood flour was decreased and as the weight mixing ratio of wood flour to ZS ceramics was increased. The optimal particle size and weight mixing ratio of wood flour were measured to be 75 ㎛ and 7∼10%, respectively. The removal test with the porous ZS ceramics prepared in these optimal condition showed very high removal efficiencies: more than 98.4% for all heavy metals and 73.9% for sulfate ion. Relative to nonporous ZS ceramics, the increment of removal efficiency of heavy metals by porous ZS ceramics with 75 ㎛ and 10% wood flour was 5.8%, 60.5%, 36.9%, 87.7%, 10.3%, and 57.4% for Al, Cd, Cu, Mn, Pb, and Zn, respectively. The mechanism analysis of removal by the porous ZS ceramics suggested that the heavy metals and sulfate ion from acid mine drainage are eliminated by multiple reactions such as adsorption and/or ion exchange as well as precipitation and/or co-precipitation.