This invention relates to the field of
polymer foaming materials technology, and discloses a
plant fiber composite nucleating agent for microfoaming of biodegradable materials and its application. The
plant fiber composite nucleating agent is made from raw materials comprising the following parts by weight: 80-95 parts of primary ultrafine
plant fiber powder, 5-20 parts of surface modifier, and 0.1-5 parts of dispersing lubricating
wax; the surface modifier and dispersing lubricating
wax are coated on the surface of the primary ultrafine plant fiber
powder. The application steps are as follows: adding the plant fiber composite nucleating agent to a biodegradable material matrix to obtain a pre-foaming blend, introducing foaming gas or adding a chemical
foaming agent for foaming treatment. The nucleating agent of this invention improves the compatibility between plant fibers and hydrophobic biodegradable matrices, provides heterogeneous
nucleation sites in the matrix while increasing the
polymer melt strength, inhibits
cell coalescence and rupture, and obtains microfoamed materials with uniform pore size. Furthermore, the nucleating agent itself is completely biodegradable.