Sliding wear, mechanical, flammability, and water intake properties of banana short fiber/Al(OH)3/epoxy composites

Abstract

Banana short fiber/Al(OH)3/epoxy composite laminates were prepared by dispersing short banana fiber and Al(OH)3 particulates in an epoxy matrix and investigated for their specific wear rate, water intake, flammability and mechanical properties. The sliding wear results showed that due to the synergistic effect of both fiber and filler in epoxy matrix enhanced the wear resistant in the composites. Similarly, the tensile stress and hardness improved significantly due to the addition of banana fiber in the composite material. Also, it is found that the composite becomes more fire resistant due to the addition of Al(OH)3. However, the higher percentage of fiber and filler increases the water absorption rate due to voids in the composite. The results of this study provide the insights of solid–solid interface leading to different bulk properties.

Keywords

• composite materials
• mechanical properties
• fire-retardancy
• water absorption
• specific wear rate
• natural fiber