Preparation and Characterization of Water Hyacinth Stems (Eichhornia Crassipes) Impregnated with Modified Polystyrene.

Stems of water hyacinth contain cellulose, a natural polymer capable of interacting with modified polystyrene. This research aims to determine the physical and mechanical properties of water hyacinth stems and to trigger the modification of polystyrene with acrylic acid using the initiator benzoyl peroxide. The impregnation technique is used to modify water hyacinth stems with modified polystyrene, resulting in optimum conditions at an impregnation time of 3 h. The results of impregnation reveal a decrease in water content from 17.97% to 6.45%, a decrease in water absorption from 94.85% to 81.37%, and an increase in the modulus of elasticity (MoE) from 22.94 MPa to 191.18 MPa. Then FT-IR analysis was carried out to determine the success of the polystyrene modification, and the surface structure of the impregnated water hyacinth stems was examined using SEM. Therefore, from these data, it can be seen that modified polystyrene resin can improve the mechanical and physical properties of water hyacinth stems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]