Impact of textile types and their hybrids on the mechanical properties and thermal insulation of mohair-reinforced polyester Composite laminates

Abstract

Mohair fibres from animals are a great choice for people who care about the environment. They have low toxicity, are abundant in raw materials and don't pose any health risks. However, when compared to synthetic fibres, their mechanical performance is not as good. Mohair fibres are best suited for low to medium load applications, such as car parts, agricultural equipment, sports equipment and household items. Despite their excellent properties, there is still a lot we don't know about mohair textile-reinforced polyester composites. The novelty of this study is testing different mohair fibre textiles to see which one provides the best characteristics. The three most commonly used locally-made mohair fabrics (woven, knitted and pressed mat) were selected as reinforcement in polyester resin. Nine different laminates of similar and hybrid layers were made by hand lay-up in a closed mold at a constant fibre weight fraction (number of layers), mold pressure, curing time and temperature. The results showed that the composite laminate of mat fabric reinforced polyester provides the maximum tensile strength, elongation, flexural strength and thermal insulation of 22 MPa, 2.2 %, 54.6 MPa, 0.27 J and 0.012 m2°C/W, respectively. Meanwhile, the woven laminate exhibited the highest impact strength of 0.27 J and the hybrid laminates of the mat and woven fabrics offer satisfactory strength of 0.25 J.

Keywords

• Mohair
• Polyester
• Animal fiber composites
• Thermal insulation
• Woven fabric
• Knitted fabric