Ballistic Properties and Izod Impact Resistance of Novel Epoxy Composites Reinforced with Caranan Fiber (Mauritiella armata)

Abstract

Natural lignocellulosic fibers (NFLs) possess several economic, technical, environmental and social advantages, making them an ideal alternative to synthetic fibers in composite materials. Caranan fiber is an NFL extract from the leafstalk of the Mauritiella armata palm tree, endemic to South America. The present work investigates the addition of 10, 20 and 30 vol% caranan fiber in epoxy resin, regarding the properties associated with Izod notch tough and ballistic performance. Following ASTM D256 standards, ten impact specimens for each fiber reinforcement condition (vol%) were investigated. For the ballistic test, a composite plate with 30 vol%, which has the best result, was tested with ten shots, using 0.22 ammunition to verify the energy absorption. The results showed that when compared to the average values obtained for the epoxy resin, the effect of incorporating 30 vol% caranan fibers as reinforcement in composites was evident in the Izod impact test, producing an increase of around 640% in absorption energy. Absorbed ballistic energy and velocity limit results provided values similar to those already reported in the literature: around 56 J and 186 J, respectively. All results obtained were ANOVA statistically analyzed based on a confidence level of 95%. Tukey’s test revealed, as expected, that the best performance among the studied impact resistance was 30 vol%, reaching the highest values of energy absorption. For ballistic performance, the Weibull analysis showed a high R2 correlation value above 0.9, confirming the reliability of the tested samples. These results illustrate the possibilities of caranan fiber to be used as a reinforcement for epoxy composites and its promising application in ballistic armor.

Mechanical and Ballistic Properties of Epoxy Composites Reinforced with Babassu Fibers (Attalea speciosa)

“…The results were similar to those found in the study by Cunha et al [68], where the authors used 40 vol.% of titica vine fibers in the epoxy matrix. In comparison, studies with hemp [9], caranan [30], and tucum [70] fibers showed significantly higher impact results. One possible explanation for this could be the arrangement of the fibers within the matrix.…”

“…However, this difference is subject to variations due to the specific characteristics of the fibers, which vary from one natural fiber to another. This variation emphasizes the notable discrepancies between the different types of natural fibers documented in the literature [30,[61][62][63][64][65][66][67]. ANOVA was also used to examine the variations in the resistance to energy absorption in the Izod impact test, as shown in Table 12.…”

Mechanical Properties, Critical Length, and Interfacial Strength of Seven-Islands-Sedge Fibers (Cyperus malaccensis) for Possible Epoxy Matrix Reinforcement

“…In the first step, the rigid as-received stalk of the Cyperus malaccensis plant is immersed in water to soften and facilitate the extraction of individual sedge fibers. Sedge fibers extracted in this way, like bamboo [23], ubim [24], buriti [16], and caranan [25], are prone to be thicker, with cross-section dimensions within tenth of mm, while plants like sisal ramie and jute, from which fibers can be easier separated, have dimensions within hundredth of mm dimensions [16]. Despite different diameters (average cross-section dimension), all carefully extracted sedge fibers are single ones, with well-known internal structure of walls with spiraling crystalline cellulose microfibrils embedded in amorphous lignin and hemicellulose matrix.…”

Periquiteira (Cochlospermum orinocense): A Promising Amazon Fiber for Application in Composite Materials

“…Several studies have revealed an increase in the search for NLFs that can be used to reinforce polymeric composites, among which those found in the Amazon region stand out [23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37]; for instance, curaua [23,29], buriti [19,30], mallow [27,35], carnauba [38] and titica vine [39]. In addition to Amazon fibers, several other NLFs are being studied as possible reinforcements for polymer composites.…”