Thermal and mechanical behaviour of sisal/phenolic composites

This research proposes the development of polymeric composites reinforced with natural fibres to become stronger the damaged timber structures and proposes thermal and mechanical characterization of these composites. Fibres with larger structural applications are glass and carbon fibres but the use of natural fibres is an economical alternative and possesses many advantages such as biodegradability, low cost and is a renewable source. Woven sisal fabric was submitted to heat treatment before moulding and the influence of moisture content of fibres on the composites behaviour was observed. The paper presents mechanical characterization by tensile and flexural strength of woven sisal fabric composites, with and without thermal treatment (at 60 °C for 72 h) on the fabric, thermal characterization by TGA and the manufacturing process by compression moulding. Experimental results show to sisal/phenolic composites a tensile strength and a flexural strength value of 25.0 MPa and 11.0 MPa, respectively, independent to the use of sisal fibres with or without thermal treatment.     

Mechanical properties of natural fibre reinforced polyester composites: Jowar,sisal and bamboo

In this paper, the experiments of tensile and flexural tests were carried out on composites made by reinforcing jowar as a new natural fibre into polyester resin matrix. The samples were prepared up to a maximum volume fraction of approximately 0.40 from the fibres extracted by retting and manual process, and compared with established composites like sisal and bamboo developed under similar laboratory conditions. Jowar fibre has a tensile strength of 302 MPa, modulus of 6.99 GPa and an effective density of 922 kg/m³. It was observed that the tensile strength of jowar fibre composite is almost equal to that of bamboo composite, 1.89 times to that of sisal composite and the tensile modulus is 11% and 45% greater than those of bamboo and sisal composites, respectively at 0.40 volume fraction of fibre. The flexural strength of jowar composite is 4%, 35% and the flexural modulus is 1.12 times, 2.16 times greater than those of bamboo and sisal composites, respectively. The results of this study indicate that using jowar fibres as reinforcement in polyester matrix could successfully develop a composite material in terms of high strength and rigidity for light weight applications compared to conventional sisal and bamboo composites.     

Investigating the mechanical properties of sisal/coconut palm hybrid fiber reinforced epoxy composite

In this study, a facile hybridization of sisal/coconut palm reinforced epoxy composite, is presented. The fabrication method involved the use of hand lay-up techniques. The results of the fabricated composites were investigated by using the universal testing machine, hardness testing machine, scanning electron microscope, and an impact testing machine. In order to obtain optimize results for the tensile, flexural, and impact strengths of the fabricated samples, the fabrication procedures involved varying the volume fractions of sisal and coconut palm hybrid with different compositions. The maximum tensile, flexural, and impact strengths measured for the fabricated fiber/polymer composite, are: 45 MPa, 90 MPa, and 38.9 kJ/m². The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive x-ray spectrometry (EDS) of the composites showed that the composites with equal volume fractions of sisal and coconut palm fiber exhibited better performance and better mechanical properties. Furthermore, the improved mechanical properties such as hardness, tensile strength, flexural strength and impact strength were obtained with fibers of longer length. By considering the excellent mechanical properties of the fabricated composite, it is envisaged that the composite be suitable for the manufacturing of helmet, automobile and train coach interiors.     

Mechanical property analysis of kenaf–glass fibre reinforced polymer composites using finite element analysis

Nowadays, natural fibres are used as a reinforcing material in polymer composites, owing to severe environmental concerns. Among many different types of natural resources, kenaf plants have been extensively exploited over the past few years. In this experimental study, partially eco-friendly hybrid composites were fabricated by using kenaf and glass fibres with two different fibre orientations of 0° and 90°. The mechanical properties such as tensile, flexural and impact strengths of these composites have been evaluated. From the experiment, it was observed that the composites with the 0° fibre orientation can withstand the maximum tensile strength of 49.27 MPa, flexural strength of 164.35 MPa, and impact strength of 6 J. Whereas, the composites with the 90° fibre orientation hold the maximum tensile strength of 69.86 MPa, flexural strength of 162.566 MPa and impact strength of 6.66 J. The finite element analysis was carried out to analyse the elastic behaviour of the composites and to predict the mechanical properties by using NX Nastran 9.0 software. The experimental results were compared with the predicted values and a high correlation between the results was observed. The morphology of the fractured surfaces of the composites was analysed using a scanning electron microscopy analysis. The results indicated that the properties were in the increasing trend and comparable with pure synthetic fibre reinforced composites, which shows the potential for hybridization of kenaf fibre with glass fibre.     

Drilling analysis of coir-fibre-reinforced polyester composites

An investigation has been carried out to make use of coir, a natural fibre abundantly available in India. Coir-polyester composites were prepared and their mechanical and machinability characteristics were studied. The short coir-fibre-reinforced composites exhibited the tensile, flexural and impact strength of 16·1709 MPa, 29·2611 MPa and 46·1740 J/m, respectively. The regression equations were developed and optimized for studying drilling characteristics of coir-polyester composites using the Taguchi approach. A drill bit diameter of 6 mm, spindle speed of 600 rpm and feed rate of 0·3 mm/rev gave the minimum value of thrust force, torque and tool wear in drilling analysis.     

Influence of redmud particle hybridization in banana/sisal and sisal/glass composites

A novel hybrid composite is developed by adding redmud as the secondary reinforcing filler with banana/sisal and sisal/glass fiber reinforced polyester composites. The composites are prepared by the hand layup technique followed by compression molding. The tensile, flexural, and impact strength of the composites are investigated by varying the parameters such as particle size (4 and 13?µm) and weight percentage (2, 4, 6, and 8?wt%) of redmud particle addition. The experimental result shows that the addition of redmud enhances the mechanical property of the hybrid composite. The maximum increase of 33% in tensile strength and 54% in flexural strength is observed for the sisal/glass composite and 25% increase in impact strength for the banana/sisal composite. The linear regression analysis is also introduced to predict the errors in the scatter plot. Furthermore, the Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) is used to study the effect of redmud on the interfacial bonding in the banana/sisal and sisal/glass fiber reinforced polyester composites.     

Sisal fiber-reinforced cement composite with Portland cement substitution by a combination of metakaolin and nanoclay

This paper reports the partial replacement of Portland cement (PC) by combination of metakaolin (MK) and nanoclay (NC) in sisal fiber-reinforced cement composites by studying the microstructure, mechanical behavior, and the interfacial properties between fiber and cement matrices. The mechanical properties of cement matrix and natural fiber-reinforced composites are studied using compressive strength development and flexural behavior, respectively. The tensile behavior of the natural fiber was also investigated and analyzed by Weibull distribution model. The characteristics of hydration products were analyzed by scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffraction, and thermogravimetry analysis. Our results show that the combination of MK and NC can improve the hydration of cement more effectively, with better microstructure and enhanced mechanical properties, than mixes without them. The calcium hydroxide (CH) contents of matrixes with 50 wt% combined substitutions, containing 1, 3, and 5 wt% of nanoclay, were 58.12, 60.16, and 64.25 % less than that of PC, respectively. The ettringite phase is also effectively removed due to the substitution of MK and NC, which improve both Al/Ca and Si/Ca ratios of calcium silicate hydrates (C–S–H) due to the high content of SiO₂ and Al₂O₃. The interfacial bond between fiber and cement matrix and flexural properties of sisal fiber-reinforced cement composites are also significantly improved. The optimum interface adhesion between sisal fiber and matrix was achieved by replacing cement by 27 % MK and 3 % NC, which increased the bond strength and pull-out energy by 131.46 and 196.35 %, respectively.     

Fabrication and testing of natural fibre composites: Vakka, sisal, bamboo and banana

A study has been carried out to investigate the tensile, flexural and dielectric properties of composites made by reinforcing vakka as a new natural fibre into a polyester resin matrix. The fibres extracted by retting and manual processes have been used to fabricate the composites. These composites are tested for tensile, flexural and dielectric properties and compared with those of established composites like sisal, bamboo and banana made under the same laboratory conditions. The composites are fabricated up to a maximum volume fraction of fibre of 0.37 in the case of tensile testing, and 0.39 for flexural and dielectric testing. It has been observed that the tensile properties increase with respect to volume fraction of fibre for vakka fibre composite and are also more than those of sisal and banana composites and comparable to those of bamboo composites. The flexural strength of vakka fibre composite is more than that of banana composite and is closer to sisal fibre composite with respect to the volume fraction of fibre, where as the flexural modulus is much higher than those of banana and sisal fibre composites and also very much closer to bamboo fibre composites. The dielectric strength of vakka fibre composite increases with increase in volume fraction of fibre in the composite unlike the case of sisal, bamboo and banana composites. The dielectric strength being a unique feature of vakka fibre composite, can be suggested for electrical insulation applications.     

Investigation on mechanical properties of woven alovera/sisal/kenaf fibres and their hybrid composites

The go-green concept results in multipoint focus towards materials made from nature; easily decomposable and recyclable polymeric materials and their composites along with natural fibres ignited the manufacturing sectors to go for higher altitudes in engineering industries. This is due to the health hazard and environmental problems faced in manufacturing and disposal of synthetic fibres. This study was undertaken to analyse the suitability of new natural fibre as an alternative reinforcement for composite materials. In this paper, tensile, flexural and impact test is made for the woven alovera and kenaf (AK), sisal and kenaf (SK), alovera, sisal and kenaf fibre hybrid epoxy composites (ASK). The composite laminates are made through a hand-layup process. The surface analysis is studied through scanning electron microscopy. From the investigation the SK hybrid composite shows good tensile property, AK hybrid composite shows better flexural property and the best impact strength is observed for ASK hybrid composite. The natural fibres slowly replace the synthetic fibres from its environmental impact, marching towards a revolution in engineering materials.     

Mechanical property evaluation of sisal–jute–glass fiber reinforced polyester composites

The composite materials are replacing the traditional materials, because of its superior properties such as high tensile strength, low thermal expansion, high strength to weight ratio. The developments of new materials are on the anvil and are growing day by day. Natural fiber composites such as sisal and jute polymer composites became more attractive due to their high specific strength, lightweight and biodegradability. Mixing of natural fiber with Glass-Fiber Reinforced Polymers (GFRPs) are finding increased applications. In this study, sisal–jute–glass fiber reinforced polyester composites is developed and their mechanical properties such as tensile strength, flexural strength and impact strength are evaluated. The interfacial properties, internal cracks and internal structure of the fractured surfaces are evaluated by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The results indicated that the incorporation of sisal–jute fiber with GFRP can improve the properties and used as a alternate material for glass fiber reinforced polymer composites.     

玻璃纤维/溴化环氧乙烯基酯加速老化与自然老化的相关性

选取我国典型气候条件下的万宁和拉萨这两个试验站,进行玻璃纤维/溴化环氧乙烯基酯3年的自然环境老化试验;同时在实验室环境下进行了玻璃纤维/溴化环氧乙烯基酯的湿热老化、热空气老化、光老化和高温浸水人工加速老化试验。测试老化后玻璃纤维/溴化环氧乙烯基酯的拉伸强度、弯曲强度和压缩强度等力学性能,研究了玻璃纤维/溴化环氧乙烯基酯在自然和实验室环境下的老化规律。用灰色理论中的灰色关联分析法计算了自然环境老化试验与人工加速老化试验的相关性。结果表明：以压缩强度为性能指标时,试验室加速光老化试验与自然环境老化试验的相关性最大,关联度达到了0.75左右。计算得到了加速光老化对拉萨和万宁自然老化的加速因子（AF）和加速转换因子（ASF）,两地的ASF最终分别稳定在5.28和7.25。     

Development and Characterization of the Midrib of Coconut Palm Leaf Reinforced Polyester Composite

In this paper, midrib of coconut palm leaves (MCL) was investigated for the purpose of development of natural fiber reinforced polymer matrix composites. A new natural fiber composite as MCL/polyester is developed by the hand lay-up method, and the material and mechanical properties of the fiber, matrix and composite materials were evaluated. The effect of fiber content on the tensile, flexural, impact, compressive strength and heat distortion temperature (HDT) was investigated. It was found that the MCL fiber had the maximum tensile strength, tensile modulus flexural strength, flexural modulus and Izod impact strength of 177.5MPa, 14.85GPa, 316.04MPa and 23.54GPa, 8.23KJ/m² respectively. Reinforcement of MCL enhanced the mechanical properties of pure polyester, including that of tensile strength (by 26%), tensile modulus (by 356%), flexural strength (by 41.81%), flexural modulus (by 169%) and Izod impact strength (by 23 times), but the compressive strength was adversely affected. HDT decreased due to fiber loading, but increased with weight fraction of fiber content. Moreover, the experimental results were compared with theoretical model (Rule of mixture) and other natural fiber /polyester composites.     

Hybrid polymeric composites reinforced with sisal fibres and silica microparticles

Polymeric composites reinforced with natural fibres have been developed in recent years, showing significant potential for various engineering applications due to their intrinsic sustainability, low cost, low weight and mechanical strength. The interfacial adhesion between natural fibres and polymeric matrices is critical to the composite performance. In order to improve the physical adhesion of polymeric composites, micro and nanoparticles have been added to synthetic fibres in the past. This work investigates the effect of silica microparticles, volume fraction of sisal and maleic anhydride on the mechanical properties of polymeric composites reinforced with unidirectional sisal natural fibres. A full factorial design (2²3¹) was carried out to identify the effect of these factors on the responses: bulk density, apparent density, apparent porosity, water absorption, mechanical strength and modulus of elasticity. A microstructure analyses was conducted to verify the interface condition. The volume fraction of fibres, silica addition, and the interaction between silica particles and maleic anhydride additions exhibited significant effects on the tensile strength and modulus of elasticity of the composites. The microsilica addition did not affect significantly the flexural strength; while the interaction between fraction of fibres, silica particles and maleic anhydride addition played a major role not only on the flexural strength, but also on the flexural modulus. The volume fraction of sisal fibres exhibited significant effects on the bulk density, apparent density, apparent porosity and water absorption of the composites.     

Hybrid polymeric composites reinforced with sisal fibres and silica microparticles

Polymeric composites reinforced with natural fibres have been developed in recent years, showing significant potential for various engineering applications due to their intrinsic sustainability, low cost, low weight and mechanical strength. The interfacial adhesion between natural fibres and polymeric matrices is critical to the composite performance. In order to improve the physical adhesion of polymeric composites, micro and nanoparticles have been added to synthetic fibres in the past. This work investigates the effect of silica microparticles, volume fraction of sisal and maleic anhydride on the mechanical properties of polymeric composites reinforced with unidirectional sisal natural fibres. A full factorial design (2²3¹) was carried out to identify the effect of these factors on the responses: bulk density, apparent density, apparent porosity, water absorption, mechanical strength and modulus of elasticity. A microstructure analyses was conducted to verify the interface condition. The volume fraction of fibres, silica addition, and the interaction between silica particles and maleic anhydride additions exhibited significant effects on the tensile strength and modulus of elasticity of the composites. The microsilica addition did not affect significantly the flexural strength; while the interaction between fraction of fibres, silica particles and maleic anhydride addition played a major role not only on the flexural strength, but also on the flexural modulus. The volume fraction of sisal fibres exhibited significant effects on the bulk density, apparent density, apparent porosity and water absorption of the composites.     

Development and analysis of high density poly ethylene (HDPE) nano SiO2 and wood powder reinforced polymer matrix hybrid nano composites

ABSTRACT

The Hybrid composites are the emerging materials which uses two or more reinforced particles or fibres simultaneously. As potential applications of the composites, wood reinforced thermoplastic composites are commercially attractive for high volume applications, but their properties can be enhanced by adding Nano SiO₂ particles. Wood powder and nano SiO₂ were mixed with high density polyethylene as matrix material. Wood powder with fixed 5 wt. % and Nano SiO₂ with varying weight % (3, 5, 7 wt. %) are reinforced in HDPE to manufacture composite materials by compression moulding process. Mechanical properties including tensile strength, flexural strength and Izod impact strength were evaluated and it was revealed that tensile strength and flexural strength were obtained maximum at 5 wt. % of Nano SiO₂ and impact strength was obtained maximum at 3 wt. % of Nano SiO₂.     

Thermal and mechanical properties of cotton fabric-reinforced geopolymer composites

As natural fibres, cotton fabrics (CF) offer good opportunities as reinforcement material for geopolymer composites as they have good intrinsic mechanical properties. This article presents thermal and mechanical properties of CF-reinforced geopolymer composites containing up to 4.1 wt% CF. Thermo-gravimetric analysis was conducted to characterise their thermal performance and their mechanical properties, such as flexural strength, fracture toughness, flexural modulus and impact strength were evaluated. Results show that the enhancement of mechanical properties was achieved at an optimum fibre content of 2.1 wt%. Results of thermal analysis show that fly-ash based geopolymer can prevent the degradation of cotton fabric at elevated temperatures.     

碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66复合材料的制备与性能表征

为制备低电阻率的尼龙66基复合材料,以碳纤维和镍粉(Ni)填充尼龙66制备碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66高导电复合材料。研究填料表面改性和含量对碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66复合材料导电性能和力学性能的影响。结果表明:KH550改性碳纤维和Ni有助于降低碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66复合材料的电阻率。碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66复合材料的电阻率随着碳纤维和Ni含量的增加而减小,且碳纤维和Ni填充尼龙66的导电逾渗阈值均为20wt%,此时制备的碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66复合材料的电阻率为455Ω·cm,熔融温度为202.2℃。碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66复合材料的弯曲强度和拉伸强度随着碳纤维或Ni含量的增加而先增大后减小。当Ni含量为20wt%时,碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66复合材料的弯曲强度和拉伸强度在碳纤维含量分别为20wt%和10wt%时达到最大值,分别为98MPa和70 MPa;当碳纤维含量为20wt%时,碳纤维-Ni/尼龙66复合材料的弯曲强度和拉伸强度则在Ni含量为30wt%和20wt%时达到最大值,分别为120 MPa和67 MPa。     

亚临界流体挤出制备木粉/聚丙烯复合材料

提出了一种通过亚临界流体辅助反应挤出制备木粉/聚丙烯(PP)复合材料的新型制备方法,其关键是在挤出过程中引入流体(乙醇和正丙醇),并使流体处于亚临界状态。同时,对木粉/PP复合材料进行了力学性能测试、FTIR和SEM观察。结果表明:在亚临界流体辅助反应挤出中,木粉发生了溶胀、液化等,有利于马来酸酐接枝聚丙烯渗入到木粉内部,其中酸酐基团与木粉中含有的大量羟基发生酯化反应增强,从而提高了木粉/PP复合材料的界面结合。在亚临界乙醇(190℃,(2.4±0.1)MPa,120r/min)作用下制备的木粉/PP复合材料的力学性能(拉伸强度、弯曲强度、弯曲模量和无缺口冲击强度)与无流体时制备的木粉/PP复合材料相比,其性能得到了一定的提高,它们分别达到了23.5 MPa、52.5 MPa、4.8GPa和5.9kJ·m~(-2)。     

The influence of fibre microstructure on fibre breakage and mechanical properties of natural fibre reinforced polypropylene

The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of fibre morphology of different natural fibres on the composites mechanical properties and on the fibre breakage due to extrusion process. The composite materials were manufactured using LTF (long fibre thermoplastic) extrusion and compression moulding and the used fibres were sisal, banana, jute and flax, and the matrix was a polypropylene. The results showed that sisal composites had the best impact properties and the longest fibres after the extrusion. Generally, the composites flexural stiffness was increased with increased fibre content for all fibres, being highest for flax composites. The flexural strength was not affected by the addition of fibres because of the low compatibility. The addition of 2 wt.% maleated polypropylene significantly improved the composites properties. Unlike the other three fibres, flax fibres were separated into individual elementary fibres during the process due to enzymatic retting and low lignin content.     

Mechanical properties of randomly oriented short Sansevieria cylindrica fibre/polyester composites

The tensile, flexural and impact properties of randomly oriented short Sansevieria cylindrica fibre/polyester (SCFP) composites are described for the first time in this work. Composites were fabricated using raw S. cylindrica fibres (SCFs) with varying fibre lengths and weight percents of fibre. When the length of the SCFs was increased, the tensile, flexural and impact properties of the composite were increased up to a 30-mm fibre length, and then a curtailment in properties occurred for higher fibre length composites. SCFP composites showed a regular trend of an increase in properties with fibre weight percent until 40% and afterwards a decrease in properties for composites with greater fibre weight percent. Tensile tests revealed that the tensile strength was about 76 MPa, the Young’s modulus was 1.1 GPa and the elongation at break was between 7% and 8.3%. The flexural strength and modulus were estimated to be around 84 MPa and 3 GPa, respectively. Impact tests exhibited a strength of approximately 9.5 J/cm². The analysis of the tensile, flexural and impact properties of short SCFP composites displayed a critical fibre length and optimum fibre weight percent of 30 mm and 40%, respectively. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) studies were carried out to evaluate the fibre/matrix interactions. The experimental tensile strengths were compared with the theoretical predictions and found to be in good agreement with Hirsch’s model. An X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of the composites exposed the presence of cellulose IV with a crystallinity index of 60% and crystallite size of 68 nm.