Abstract
This paper presents an experimental study carried out to determine the effects of fibre size on the mass loss, specific wear rate, roughness, and temperature distribution of Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch (OPEFB) epoxy composites. These epoxy samples were produced by mixing raw OPEFB fibres with epoxy. The samples were prepared at different sizes of fibres (100, 125, 180 and 250µm). Wear tests in dry sliding condition was carried out using Abrasion Resistance Tester (TR-600. The wear tests were performed at room temperature with two different loads (10 and 30N) and at constant sliding velocity of 1.4m/s. Mass loss and specific wear rate values for the composite materials were obtained and roughness values before and after abrasion were recorded. Temperature changes during abrasion testing of the composite surfaces were also captured using Infrared Camera. The mass loss was significantly higher for the smallest fibre size (100µm) examined at 30N. At other fibre sizes, the mass loss values were relatively closed. Distribution and orientation of fibres are suspected to have influenced the trend observed in the results.
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