Determination of thermophysical properties of Ficus elastica leaves reinforced epoxy composite

Abstract

In this study, Ficus elastica leaves have been reinforced into an epoxy composite and some physical and chemical characterization of the obtained composite is made. Ficus elastica leaves are ground between 297 and 149 microns. The biomass (Ficus elastica) prepared as a filler material is kept in sodium hydroxide (% 7 NaOH) solution for 24 hours for alkali activation. It is then washed three times with distilled water and dried in an oven at 75 °C for 3 hours. Composite production is carried out by reinforcing the prepared filler to the epoxy resin in certain proportions by mass. The effect of the biomass filler added at the rate of 0 wt.%, 1 wt.%, 3 wt.%, 5 wt.%, and 7 wt.% on the density, Shore D hardness, thermal conductivity coefficient, and activation energy of the epoxy composite is determined. According to the results obtained, the density of the epoxy composite decreases as the filler ratio in the mixture increases. Shore D hardness of epoxy composite decreases with the addition of biomass filler. The epoxy composite produced with biomass reinforcement reduces both the thermal conductivity coefficient and the activation energy. Besides, when the chemical bond structure of the obtained polyester composite is analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR), it is seen that there is a physical interaction. According to scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images, 5 wt.% and 7 wt.% reinforcement of Ficus elastica leaves negatively affects the surface morphology of the epoxy composite.

Obtaining Pectin Reinforced Polyester Composite and Investigation of Thermophysical Properties

“…Activation energies of pectin reinforced the composites at a certain conversion ratio (range of 0.20 to 0.80) found. Thermal decomposition experiments have been carried out from 20 °C to 600 °C at a heating rate of 10 °C/min [34,35]. In this study, 5 wt.% and higher pectin powder reinforcement negatively affect the surface morphology of the polyester composite.…”

“…Moreover, high biomass reinforcement weakens the thermal decomposition behavior of the polyester composite. The thermal stability of the composite is evaluated by calculating the activation energies found in the thermal degradation kinetics [29][30][31][32][33][34][35].…”

Production of SBS Reinforced Polyester Composite: Characterization of Physical and Chemical Properties

“…At this ratio, the homogeneity, surface structure, flexibility, workability, physical properties, and thermoplastic behaviors of the composite have been improved. Therefore, both the type and amount of filler are effective to produce polyester composites at the desired standards according to the intended use (32)(33)(34)(35).…”

Physical and Chemical Properties of Organic Waste Reinforced Polyester Composites

“…The use of such waste biomass reduces the density and hardness of the composite and increases its workability. The choice of bioresources is very important for the development of both economical and environmentally friendly composites and for reducing the carbon footprint [35][36][37][38][39].…”