Experimental investigation on the effect of fiber volume fraction of sponge gourd outer skin fiber reinforced epoxy composites

摘要

Natural fibers have gained popularity as composite reinforcements in recent years. Matured sponge gourd has a fibrous structure consisting of inner core and outer shell (skin). Several studies were done on the inner core as reinforcement in the various thermoplastic and thermoset polymer matrices. In the current experimental study, the fibers were extracted from the outer skin of the matured sponge gourd used as reinforcement in the epoxy matrix. Extracted sponge gourd outer skin fibers (SGOSF) were cut into short fibers then reinforced with the epoxy resin and the composites were manufactured by compression molding method. The fiber volume fraction varies from 10 to 50 wt% reinforced with epoxy matrix and the composites were characterized by mechanical, thermal, and water absorption characteristics. The results revealed that 40 wt% SGOSF reinforced composites have higher tensile, flexural, compressive, and impact strengths and hardness when compared to other prepared composite materials. It is found from the thermal study results that the developed composite can withstand up to 340 degrees C higher temperature than neat epoxy. The matrix/fiber bonding and void content were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis.