Development of biocomposites using novel green pea pod lignin and hybridized pod sheath fibre-bamboo epoxy composite for human prosthetic application

Abstract

In this research epoxy-based biocomposites were developed using novel green pea pod lignin and hybridized pod sheath fibre-bamboo epoxy composite for human prosthetic applications. The outcomes of this investigation demonstrates that the inclusion of lignin, up to 1.0 vol. % yields a tensile strength of 159 MPa, flexural strength of 202 MPa, interlaminar shear strength of 28.6 Mpa, and Izod impact toughness of 5.93 J. In terms of wear resistance, the composite designation with 2.0 vol. % of lignin exhibited lower wear loss of 0.01 g and 0.38 of coefficient of friction. Both the mechanical and wear results are statistically significant with P < 0.05), confirmed by analysis of variance. Additionally, the highest fatigue life counts were recorded for composite with 1 vol. % of lignin with counts of 34,632 cycles for 30% of the ultimate tensile strength. Furthermore, the addition of lignin up to 2.0 vol. % resulted in the lowest contact angle of 82° and water absorption percentage of 0.16%. Scanning electron microscopy analysis indicated that the incorporation of surface-treated fibres and lignin uniformly dispersed and adhered more. Based on these findings, it is evident that the composite containing 40 vol. % of sheath/bamboo hybridized fibre with 1.0 vol. % of lignin in the epoxy matrix represents the most favourable outcome for prosthetic applications.