Effect of Fiber Volume Fraction on Mechanical and Fire Resistance Properties of Basalt/Polyester and Pineapple/Polyester Composites

Abstract

In general, the wood materials are used for constructing the buildings, passenger seats in trains and automobile doors. However, the progression of the fires due to the wooden construction is high when the fire accidents have occurred in the buildings, rail and road vehicles. To overcome this, advanced basalt fiber reinforced polymer composites can be replaced with these wood materials, owing to the high melting point of basalt fiber. However, fire resistance characterization studies are limited to natural fiber composites of different fiber volume fractions, particularly for rock fibers. There is a need to identify the fiber volume fraction effect on fire resistance characteristics of composites for filling this research gap. In this study, mechanical, water absorption, and fire resistance properties of Basalt Rock Fibers (BRF) and Pineapple Leaf Fibers (PLF) reinforced polyester composite panels were investigated. The effect of fiber volume fractions ranging from 10% to 45% on the above-mentioned properties was studied. The theoretical Young’s modulus values were determined using the Halpin-Tsai model. Results indicated that the mechanical properties of BRF/polyester and PLF/polyester composites increased with the increase in fiber volume fraction (FVF) of up to 40% and 30%, respectively. The theoretical Young’s modulus values are in reasonably good agreement with the experiments. The percentage of the linear burning rate was found to be decreased, with the increase in FVF. It was found through the water absorption studies that PLF/polyester composites are hydrophilic whereas BRF/polyester composites are hydrophobic.

Keywords

• natural fibers
• fiber volume fraction
• mechanical properties
• scanning electron microscopy
• water absorption
• fire resistance