Biobased Fillers for Polypropylene for Interior Application

Coconut shell and torrefied wood are bio-sourced and renewable materials that can be used as fillers in various polymer matrices. Torrefied wood material can be produced from numerous cellulose based materials, such as wood, sunflower hulls, flax shive, hemp and oat hulls. These bio-fillers would replace talc and glass bubbles which are not a renewable resource. Additionally, the implementation of torrefied wood and coconut would reduce the carbon footprint and improve sustainability of Hyundai and Kia vehicles, improving customer perception of our product line. In this study, coconut and torrefied wood filled polypropylene properties are tested for a HVAC Case application.