Interfacial shear strength and thermal properties of electron beam-treated henequen fibers reinforced unsaturated polyester composites

Abstract

Natural fiber henequen/unsaturated polyester (UPE) composites were fabricated by means of a compression molding technique using chopped henequen fibers treated at various electron beam (EB) dosages. The interfacial shear strength (IFSS), dynamic mechanical properties, and thermal expansion behavior were investigated through a single fiber microbonding test, fractographic observation, dynamic mechanical analysis, and thermomechanical analysis, respectively. The results indicated that the interfacial and dynamic mechanical properties significantly depended on the level of the EB treatment irradiated onto the henequen fiber surfaces. The effect of EB treatment on the IFSS, storage modulus and fracture surface of the henequen/UPE composites agreed with each other. The results of this study also suggested that the modification of henequen fiber surfaces at 10 kGy EB is the most effective for improving the interfacial properties of the henequen/UPE composites.

Improving the bonding between henequen fibers and high density polyethylene using atmospheric pressure ethylene-plasma treatments

“…For the (120, 1.0, 1.018) treated fiber, the load-displacement curve depicts better bonded interphase; after the interphase has failed, the fiber can still be extracted in a controlled way and friction was measured until the fiber was completely pulled-out. This behavior suggests a better fiber-matrix interlocking and to the possible interaction between the hydrocarbon film deposited onto the surface with the HDPE matrix [11,[14][15][16][18][19][20]. Henequen fibers are polar hydrophilic lignocellulosic fibers because they have a chemical composition consisting of cellulose (70% w/w), hemicellulose (20% w/w), lignin (8%) and extractives (2%).…”

“…However, even though the wet chemical treatments of fiber surfaces have been somewhat successful in improving the interfacial bonding, there are still problems related to the appropriate handling and disposal of the large amounts of hazardous chemicals that are often involved and concerned with environmental pollution problems. These problems have limited a wider industrial application of chemical fiber surface treatments [4,[16][17][18][19][20]. Cold plasma is a solvent-free technique with no liquid waste generated and can therefore be considered as an environmentally sound method.…”

Thermal and dynamic-mechanical characterization of rice-husk filled polypropylene composites

“…19,20 Figure 7(a) shows the temperature dependence of the storage modulus (E') for unfilled PP and for the non-coupled composites. In all the systems it can be verified that the storage modulus drops upon increasing temperature due to the increased segmental mobility of the polymer chains with heating.…”

Phenylethynyl-terminated polyimide, exfoliated graphite nanoplatelets, and the composites: an overview

“…The adhesion between the fibers and matrix was largely enhanced by the PETI-5 interphase. For evaluating the fiber-matrix adhesion of fiberreinforced plastics, interfacial shear strength and/or interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) tests can often provide very useful information [60][61][62]. Short-beam shear test results have indicated that when PETI-5 was sized at 150°C, the ILSS of a 2-directional carbon/BMI composite was markedly improved, by about 35% and 66%, respectively, in comparison to an unsized counterpart, as seen in Fig.…”