Experimental Investigation of Effect of Fiber Length on Mechanical, Wear, and Morphological Behavior of Silane-Treated Pineapple Leaf Fiber Reinforced Polymer Composites

Abstract

The development of the best properties in polyester composite from pineapple leaf fiber (PALF) as a reinforcing material is a subject of interest. The properties of PALF are reliant upon fiber length, wherein technical difficulties in production of long fibers and processing for better characteristics in polyester composites possess inherent challenges. The PALFs are subjected to silane treatment for altering fiber properties. This research attempts to analyze the impact of silane-treated PALF with varying fiber lengths (5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 mm) on the performance of natural fiber composites (NFC) properties. Open mold and hand lay-up techniques were employed to develop the polyester composites. The prepared PALF-based polyester composites were examined for different properties (impact, flexural, tensile strength, and wear rate). Coefficient of friction and wear studies are performed on the prepared composites subjected to different loads (10, 20, and 30 N) via a pin on disc test rig. Polymer composite fracture surfaces were analyzed to observe the interfacial bonding between fibers and matrix via scanning electron microscopy (SEM). SEM results showed that the application of silane treatment resulted in better surface topography (fiber length of 5–10 mm showed smooth surface resulted in crack proliferation possessing low fracture toughness of 15–32 MPa; whereas a 15–20 mm fiber length resulted in better fiber–matrix bonding, improving the fracture toughness from 42–55 MPa) as a result of change in chemical structure in PALF. The 20 mm length of PALF resulted in better properties (flexural, tensile, impact, and wear resistance) which are attributed to fiber–matrix interfacial bonding. These properties ensure the developed polymer composites can be applied to walls, building insulation, and artificial ceilings.

Optimization of mode‐I fracture toughness using the Taguchi method in cellulosic fiber‐Grewia Optiva reinforced biocomposites

“…Fiber length and wt% are the key factors for the interfacial bonding strength between the fiber and matrix material. The effect of pineapple leaf fiber length was studied by Anand et al 67 who concluded that 15–20 mm fiber length resulted in better fiber–matrix bonding, and improved fracture toughness as compared to the short fiber of 5–10 mm or long fiber of 25 mm. Chavan et al 68 studied the effect of fiber lengths of 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 70 mm on the tensile strength and found that the optimum tensile strength was observed for the fiber length 30 to 45 mm of sun hemp, banana, and Sisal fiber.…”

A two‐stage analysis for the role of fiber size in terms of length distribution on the performance under accelerated weathering tests of oil palm empty fruit bunch fiber‐reinforced vinyl acrylic composites

“…Alternatively, when composites are subjected to stress, interfacial voids may form and act as stress concentrators, leading to poor mechanical behavior 47 . Generally, larger fibers hinder matrix penetration between the fiber and resin spaces, resulting in low wetting characteristics and thus inefficient stress transfer at the matrix‐reinforcement interface 48 . Furthermore, when materials are exposed to service conditions, cracks expand around the fibers; therefore, the fracture surface area increases with particle size, causing reduced tensile properties 49 .…”

“…47 Generally, larger fibers hinder matrix penetration between the fiber and resin spaces, resulting in low wetting characteristics and thus inefficient stress transfer at the matrixreinforcement interface. 48 Furthermore, when materials are exposed to service conditions, cracks expand around the fibers; therefore, the fracture surface area increases with particle size, causing reduced tensile properties. 49 All of the above can be quantitatively reflected in the in OPEFB/vinyl acrylic composites-by means of the fraction not shared between the fiber length distributionsin at least 20.93% of OPEFB fibers retained on mesh no.…”

Study on laser scribed graphene from cyanate-based composites and applications in in-situ curing monitoring and liquid sensing

“…Fiber-reinforced polymeric composites (FRPs), a typical lightweight engineering material with remarkable specific modulus and strength, heat insulation, corrosion resistance and shock absorption are increasingly favored in diversified fields, such as aerospace, civil engineering and automobile manufacturing [5,6] . Recently, graphene has been envisioned as the powerful building block for next-generation FRPs with the purpose of smart structures integration and multifunctional properties mastery [7,8] .…”