Study and development of composite materials containing industrial wastes (tanning process residues, wood-cellulose waste fibers, sewage sludge, hydrochar) as fillers.
The research activity is carried out on semi-industrial scale by using shaping techniques used extensively for producing plastic items (extrusion, injection molding, blown film extrusion). The produced materials are characterized through thermal analysis, rheological properties, mechanical testing, morphological properties, and by evaluating their biodegradability in different environments (soil, composting, marine environment
Main publications:
Puccini, M., Seggiani, M., Vitolo, S., Polyethylene and hydrolyzed collagen blend films produced by blown extrusion (2015), Chemical Engineering Transactions, 43: 1705-1710
Puccini, M., Stefanelli, E., Seggiani, Balestri, E., Vitolo, S., Biodegradability of polyethylene/hydrolyzed collagen blends in terrestrial and marine environmental conditions (2017), Journal of Renewable Materials, 5(1): 117-123
Seggiani, M., Altieri, R., Puccini, M., Stefanelli, E., Esposito, A., Castellani, F., Stanzione, V., Vitolo, S. Polycaprolactone-collagen hydrolysate thermoplastic blends: Processability and biodegradability/compostability (2018), Polymer Degradation and Stability, 105: 13-24
Research group: Prof. Monica Puccini, Prof. Sandra Vitolo, Dr. Eleonora Stefanelli