Oil palm ash (OPA) is available in abundance, is renewable, can be obtained at no cost and shows good performance at high thermal conditions. Combinations of the unsaturated polyester with natural fillers have been reported to improve the mechanical and thermal properties of composites. Utilisation of oil palm ash as a filler in the manufacture of polymer composites can significantly reduce the requirement for other binders or matrixes of composite materials. This research uses oil palm ash as a filler to form composites through the investigation of the effect of different contents of filler on the properties of OPA-filled unsaturated polyester (UP/OPA) composites. The effect of different volume fractions, i.e., 0, 10, 20 and 30 vol.% of oil palm ash introduced into 100, 90, 80 and 70 vol.% of an unsaturated polyester matrix on the composite mechanical properties, i.e., tensile and flexural, has been studied, together with thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetric (DSC). Specimens were prepared using compression moulding techniques based on the ASTM D790 and D5083 standards for flexural and tensile tests, respectively. The tensile and flexural mechanical properties of UP/OPA composites were improved in modulus by increasing the filler content. Thermal stability of the composites increased as the OPA filler content was increased, which was a logical consequence because of the high thermal stability of the silica compound of the OPA filler compared with that of the UP matrix. The results from the surface electron microscope (SEM) analysis were the extension of mechanical and thermal tests.
Biodiesel, a form of diesel fuel, is an alternative fuel similar to the conventional diesel (the fossil) and can be produced from vegetable oils, animal oils and fats, tallow and waste cooking oils. In this study, oil was extracted from shea butter, and then subjected to transesterification process to convert it to biodiesel. Both the oil and the biodiesel were characterized using the standard procedures. The results showed that the oil has a density of 923.82 Kgm 3 , refractive index of 1.464, viscosity of 4.5 mm 2 /s at 40 O C, acid value of 1.84 mgKOH/g, saponification value of 189.53 mgKOH/g, flash point of 338 O C and iodine value of 35.52 mgI 2 /g. While the results for the biodiesel showed that it has a density of 887.61 Kgm 3 , refractive index of 1.441, viscosity of 3.62 mm 2 /s at 40 O C, acid value of 0.37 mgKOH/g, saponification value of 265.81 mgKOH/g, flash point of 96 O C and iodine value of 34.24 mgI 2 /g. These results were found to be within the ranges of American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) specification.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.