Karakterisasi mekanik biokomposit klobot jagung sebagai bahan dasar plastik biodegradable

Abstract

The corn production in Indonesia, based on the data from Badan Pusat Statistik in 2011, amounted to 17.6 million tons, the cornhusk from the corn crop is about 38.38%. The utilization of cornhusk itself has not been maximized yet, so the research to maximize the utilization of cornhusk is required. In this research, the biocomposite of the corn and Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE) with hot press method has been made. Biocomposites is made of cornhusk variations: LLDPE are 30:70, 40:60, 50:50, 60:40, 70:30, and characterized the mechanical properties (tensile and tear) with a Universal Testing Machine (UTM). The thermal properties of cornhusk is also analyzed by using Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). Mechanical analysis indicates the increasing of the mechanical properties with the addition of LLDPE concentration in biocomposites, with a concentration 30 : 70 has supreme mechanical properties with 24.77 MPa tensile strength, 19:10% elongation, and tear strength of 53.94 N / mm, while the highest elasticity of modulus is owned by the biocomposite with the concentration of 50: 50. This result contrasts to the biodegradable analysis, where the greater concentration of the cornhusk the higher biodegradabilitas level.