THERMAL CARACTERIZATION BEHAVIOR OF EPOXY COMPOSITES REINFORCED RAMIE FIBERS

摘要

A natural fiber, extracted from the stems of the ramie plant is available in several regions around the world. Owing to its low cost and weight, it may be used in many applications, including engineering composites. In fact, epoxy composites reinforced with natural lignocellulosic fibers have attracted interest in several areas, especially engineering due to its low cost, besides being lighter. They can replace traditional composites such as fiber glass. The use of composites reinforced with ramie fibers above the ambient temperature has not been fully investigated. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the thermal behavior of epoxy composites reinforced with up to 30% by volume of ramie fibers. The analysis was conducted by thermogravimetric, TGA and DTG. The results show a sensible effect of the ramie fibers by reducing the thermal stability of the composites.