Effect of Sugarcane Bagasse, Softwood, and Cellulose on the Mechanical, Thermal, and Morphological Properties of PP/PE Blend  
[PERSON]  
1 Department of Chemistry, University of Zulululand, Private Bag x1001, KwaDlangezwa 3886, South Africa; moohomanes@unizulu. incorporating various compatibilizers, such as maleic anhydride, and grafted polymers, among others [7]. [PERSON] et al. [14] conducted a study on the mechanical and rheological properties of wood/thermoplastics composites made from PP/PE blends grafted with maleic anhydride. Their findings revealed that grafting with anhydride grafting led to an increase in the tensile and flexural strength of the resulting PP/PE/wood composites, as compared to the nongrafted samples. The introduction of anhydride groups in the PP/PE blend improved the dispersion and interfacial bonding of wood particles within the blend matrix, which was supported by SEM analyses. In another study, [PERSON] et al. [15] investigated the thermal and mechanical properties of composites made from a blend of PP, PE, and wood powder (WP). The results showed an improvement in the mechanical properties which was attributed to a stronger interaction between maleic-anhydride-grafted polypropylene (MAPP) and WP. The Young's modulus and the stress at break increased and decreased, respectively, with an increase in WP content in the composites. Additionally, the introduction of WP increased the thermal stability of the PP/HDPE blend. SEM analysis also revealed enhanced dispersion of WP in the PP/HDPE blend. [PERSON] et al. [6] also reported similar improvements in mechanical properties, morphology, and thermal stability when investigating the effect of blending thermoplastic starch (TPS) and PP/PE using polyethylene-grafted maleic anhydride (PE-g-MA) in composite blends. According to [PERSON] et al. [12], the compatibility of the fiber with polyolefins can also be achieved through surface modification of cellulose fibers using reactive agents such as polydopamine and octadecylamine, which make the fiber hydrophobic. In their study, the modified cellulose microfibers (CMFs) exhibited improved dispersibility in the PP matrix because of reduced hydrophilicity. Furthermore, increasing the CMF content and surface modification of the CMFs resulted in higher tensile modulus and yield stress. [PERSON] et al. [16] developed a wood plastic composite using a blend of recycled PP/PE (rPP/PE) reinforced with kenaf fiber. The results confirmed that the introduction of kenaf fiber improved the flexural strength and modulus, with the maximum improvements observed at weight loading of 30%. Additionally, the results showed that there was reduction in the melting point and degree of crystallinity of r-PP/PE with an increase in kenaf fiber beyond 30% loading. To address the poor performance of PE/PP blends, it is possible to transform them into microfibrillar composites (MFCs) [9]. MFCs are materials comprising a thermoplastic polymer matrix that is reinforced with microfibrils of another thermoplastic polymer. The MFCs have great potential for large-scale application in immiscible recycled polyolefin, and their final properties can be improved by modifying their morphology. PP and PE are generally incompatible and have a phase separation morphology during their cooling and crystallization processes. According to [PERSON] and [PERSON] [13], the crystallization process can have a significant impact on polymer blends' morphological features, thermal properties, and mechanical properties. The study by [PERSON] et al. [11] reported that the addition of PP to PE enhances the polyethylene's ability to withstand environmental stress cracks and improves the modulus and yield stress of the resulting blend. There have been various studies on PP/PE blend composites in the literature, which have investigated mechanical and morphological properties using different fillers and compatibilizers [17; 18; 19]. However, to the best of our knowledge, there has never been a systematic comparison of PP/PE/SCB and PP/PE/SW blend composites.