Sustainable Composites from Biodegradable Polyester Modified with Camelina Meal: Synergistic Effects of Multicomponents on Ductility Enhancement

Biodegradable composites were prepared via a melt compression molding process with dehulled camelina meal (DeCM) as the biomass-based filler and poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-4-hydroxybutyrate) (P(3,4)HB) or poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) as the aliphatic polyester matrix. The incorporation of 25 parts DeCM into the composite promoted an impressive increase of 461% in the elongation at break of the P(3,4)HB-based composites. Concurrently, the elongation at break of PBS-based composites containing 20 parts of DeCM increased by 71% over the neat materials. Extraction of components from the DeCM (oil and protein) showed that oil had a critical plasticization effect that enhanced the ductility of the composites. Compared with neat materials, the presence of DeCM filler had no significant effect on the thermal properties of the composites and preserved the original crystalline structure of the polyester component in the composites. Renewable, economical, and biodegradable DeCM is a promising functional biomass-based filler for polyester-based composites, and it is worth noting that the synergistic effects of multicomponents in DeCM played a key role in ductility enhancement.