DEVELOPMENT AND CHARACTERIZATION OF NATURAL FIBRE REINFORCED COMPOSITES

Abstract

Natural fibre based polymer composites have attained a commanding position in various industries owing to their superior mechanical and physical properties as compared to conventional materials. These materials have low cost, easy availability, recyclability, and biodegradability. The present research work is focused on development of lightweight, environment friendly, cost-effective composite materials based on sisal, jute, nettle and hemp fibres. Polypropylene (PP) is a potentially outstanding matrix in natural fibre composites whereas polyethylene (PE) also incorporates very good properties in composite itself when reinforced with natural fibre. The experimental data has been used to compare the mechanical and morphological behaviour of the developed composites under different types of loading conditions. Various fibres in the woven form were combined with the polypropylene sheets as sandwich form in compression molding machine. The fibre volume fraction was taken as I 5wt%, 20 wt% and 25wt% for fabricating the composites. The mechanical properties were evaluated by means of tensile strength, three point bending (flexural) and charpy impact tests. Results show improved tensile, flexural (bending) and impact strength of the composites when compared to the neat polypropylene and polyethylene. The result shows that sisal fibre based composites have better mechanical properties than any other PP or PE based composites. SEM (scanning electron microscopic) analysis of the tensile fracture side of the composite was carried out and results show the improved interfacial bonding between the fibre and the matrix. It has been established that the PE based composites have better adhesion property in between the matrix and fibre as compared to PP based composites.