Frictional Properties of α-Nucleated Polypropylene-Based Composites Filled with Wood Flour

Wood-polymer composites (WPCs) as eco-friendly materials characterized by advantageous properties are a popular alternative for conventional polymeric compositions. Even though they are widely popular and utilized in many branches of industry, some of their characteristic still remain obscure. The domain which demands better insight is tribology of wood-polymer composites. The aim of this paper was to describe the phenomena behind friction and wear of WPCs in reference to the surface topography. The object of this research were alpha-nucleated polypropylene-based composites filled with 0, 5, 10, 20 and 30 wt.% of wood flour. Hardness, coefficient of friction and changes of surface topography of the samples due to wear were evaluated. It was concluded that addition of the natural based filler causes an increase of the composite's coefficient of friction.