Abstract:

Use of eco-friendly composites has recently gained importance due to their light weight, and moderate strength. The favourable environmental impact of synthetic fibers has forced many researchers to look for alternative materials. In this paper, we have studied the effect of chemical treatment on mechanical properties of randomly mixed hybrid fiber composites for varying fiber percentage weight (wt %). The fibers of banana and kenaf were treated with 2.0% of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution for 3 hrs and composites are prepared with different fiber wt% ratio keeping the overall ratio of fibers as equal. Composites made with treated fibers exhibited superior mechanical properties i.e., tensile strength, flexural strength and impact strength. After treatment, the tensile strength, flexural strength and impact strength were increased to 36.4 MPa, 25.2 MPa and 0.6 kJ/m2, respectively due to the removal of impurities from the fiber surface. The fractured surfaces of composites were investigated using scanning electron microscopy.
Received on November 16, 2009, revised on April 1, 2010
References: 11