Abstract
ABSTRACT The quantity of bottled water and other household packaging materials increases enormously in developing countries like Ethiopia. Most of these materials are packed with polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics which results in the mounting of wastes rapidly. Due to their non-biodegradability, PET wastes cause challenges such as landfills, health problems, and a reduction in productivity. PET, a thermoplastic polymer, can be remelted and molded into different products. In this research, the recycled PET is reinforced with natural fibers such as false banana and sisal fibers to produce floor tile composites. The processing steps include a collection of waste PET and natural fibers, cleaning, shredding, treating fibers, composite manufacturing, and characterizing. The use of natural fibers in recycled plastics resulted in the production of cheaper, effective floor tile composites, and a reduction in environmental pollution. The FTIR analysis shows the removal of certain functional groups in chemically treated natural fibers and the occurrence of chemical and mechanical degradations during the recycling process. Natural fibers reinforced composite samples showed about 36% lightness compared to glass fibers reinforced composites and resulted in maximum compression strength of 3.1 MPa. Further study needs to be undertaken to enhance the mechanical properties of such composites in the future.
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