Characterization of interfacial strength in natural fibre – polyolefin composites at different temperatures

Abstract

It is often suggested that optimization of the fibre-matrix interfacial adhesion is essential to improve the mechanical performance of natural fibre reinforced thermoplastic compounds. The use of such composites in many applications often requires characterisation of performance over a range of temperatures. This paper presents a study on the measurements of the interfacial adhesion of coir fibre with various polyolefin matrices at room temperature. We then present a novel adaptation of a dynamical mechanical analyser to enable the measurement of interfacial shear strength over the temperature range of −40°C to 120°C. Results from these measurements are presented and discussed in terms of the relationship of apparent IFSS to residual thermal stresses in such thermoplastic composites.

Studies on interfacial shear strength of pineapple leaf fibre from agro-waste reinforced polypropylene composites: Influence of fibre length and carding parameters

“…This finding shows that the IFSS of longer cut-length and fourth passage carded PALF reinforced PP composites was quite similar to that of some glass fibre-reinforced composite materials. 24 The IFSS values obtained in this work are higher than previously reported ligno-cellulosic fibre reinforced PP composites such as PP-flax, 26,28 PP-coir, 19 PP-banana empty fruit bunch fibre, 27 PPsisal, 12 PP-flax, 13 PP-MAPP-flax, PP-MAPP ramie fibre, 23 PALF-polylactic acid, 29 and PALF-phenolic resin modified powder 8 but lower than the flax-polyamide 11 composites. 55 Unlike commonly used interfacial modification techniques, including physical and chemical treatments on PALF, 56 this study provides a new strategy for preparing a hierarchical composite interface with superior IFSS without using any chemicals.…”

“…[14][15][16] It has been frequently stated in the existing literature that the improvement of fibre-matrix interfacial adhesion is essential for enhancing the mechanical performance of thermoplastic composites reinforced with natural fibres. [17][18][19] SFPT is particularly helpful in identifying the material behaviour that predominates during the failure process, when composites experience fracture along the fibre surface. 20,21 Previous studies related to IFSS (characterised using SFPT) of natural fibre reinforced PP-matrix composites are summarized in Table 1.…”

Micromechanical Tests on Natural Fibre Composites with Enzymatically Enhanced Fibre–Matrix Adhesion

“…Often, natural fibres' diameters scatter within one yarn sample. Single natural fibres are often curved, adding an extra step to the embedding process (Thomason 2021). Micromechanical measurements are often made on fibre bundles.…”

“…Micromechanical tests on single fibre model composites are especially sensitive to shear stress (Kim and Mai 1998;Herrera-Franco and Drzal, 1992). In the field of natural fibre composites, some micromechanical tests have been reported (Li et al 2009;Doan et al 2012;Graupner et al 2014;Thomason and Rudeiros-Fernández 2021;Müssig and Graupner 2020). The present study compares two micromechanical tests and their use in natural fibre composites, namely the single fibre pullout test (SFPO) and single fibre fragmentation test (SFFT).…”

Effect of the Characteristics of Maleic Anhydride-Grafted Polypropylene (MAPP) Compatibilizer on the Properties of Highly Filled (85%) Kenaf-Polypropylene Composites

“…The polar nature of the lignocellulosic fibers combined with the non-polar characteristics of the polyolefins creates difficulties in compounding, often resulting in composites with poor fiber-matrix adhesion and therefore low stress transfer 3,7,[19][20][21][22][23][24] . The proper selection of compatibilizers is necessary to improve interaction, adhesion and stress transfer between fibers and polymer.…”