Kenaf natural fiber reinforced polypropylene composites: A discussion on manufacturing problems and solutions |
| |
| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, 2555 Engineering Building, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA;2. Composite Materials and Structures Center, 2100 Engineering Building, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA;3. School of Packaging, 130 Packaging Building, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA;1. Department of Aerospace Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia;2. Laboratory of Biocomposite Technology (BIOCOMPOSITE), Institute of Tropical Forestry and Forest Products (INTROP), Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia;3. Aerospace Malaysia Innovation Centre (944751-A), Prime Minister''s Department, MIGHT Partnership Hub, Jalan Impact, 63000 Cyberjaya, Selangor, Malaysia;4. School of Mechatronic Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, Pauh Putra Campus, 02600 Arau, Perlis, Malaysia;5. Engineering Department, Razak School of Engineering and Advanced Technology, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Sultan Yahya Petra, 51400 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia;1. School of Engineering, University of Waikato, Hamilton 3216, New Zealand;2. Faculty of Civil Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia;3. Department of Textile Technology, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Viet Nam;1. Department of “Ingegneria Civile, Ambientale, Aerospaziale, dei Materiali”, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, 90128 Palermo, Italy;2. CNR ITAE, Salita S. Lucia sopra Contesse 5, 98126 Messina, Italy;1. Mechanical Engineering Department, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia;2. Centre for Foundation Studiest, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia |
| |
| Abstract: | As industry attempts to lessen the dependence on petroleum based fuels and products there is an increasing need to investigate more environmentally friendly, sustainable materials to replace existing materials. This study focused on the fabrication of kenaf fiber reinforced polypropylene sheets that could be thermoformed for a wide variety of applications with properties that are comparable to existing synthetic composites. The research done in this study has proven the ability to successfully fabricate kenaf–polypropylene natural fiber composites into sheet form. The optimal fabrication method for these materials was determined to be a compression molding process utilizing a layered sifting of a microfine polypropylene powder and chopped kenaf fibers. A fiber content of both 30% and 40% by weight has been proven to provide adequate reinforcement to increase the strength of the polypropylene powder. The use of a coupling agent, 3% Epolene enabled successful fiber–matrix adhesion. The kenaf–PP composites compression molded in this study proved to have superior tensile and flexural strength when compared to other compression molded natural fiber composites such as other kenaf, sisal, and coir reinforced thermoplastics. With the elastic modulus data from testing, it was also possible to compare the economic benefits of using this kenaf composite over other natural fibers and E-glass. The kenaf–maleated polypropylene composites manufactured in this study have a higher Modulus/Cost and a higher specific modulus than sisal, coir, and even E-glass thereby providing an opportunity for replacing existing materials with a higher strength, lower cost alternative that is environmentally friendly. |
| |
| Keywords: | |
| 本文献已被 ScienceDirect 等数据库收录！ |
|
