Abstract
Natural fibre-based materials are gaining popularity in the composites industry, particularly for automotive structural and semi-structural applications, considering the growing interest and awareness towards sustainable product design. Surface treatment and nanofiller addition have become one of the most important aspects of improving natural fibre reinforced polymer composite performance. The novelty of this work is to examine the combined effect of fibre surface treatment with Alumina (Al2O3) and Magnesia (MgO) nanofillers on the mechanical (tensile, flexural, and impact) behaviour of biotex flax/PLA fibre reinforced epoxy hybrid nanocomposites. Al2O3 and MgO with a particle size of 50 nm were added in various weight proportions to the epoxy and flax/PLA fibre, and the composite laminates were formed using the vacuum bagging technique. The surface treatment of one set of fibres with a 5% NaOH solution was investigated for its effect on mechanical performance. The results indicate that the surface-treated reinforcement showed superior tensile, flexural, and impact properties compared to the untreated reinforcement. The addition of 3 wt. % nanofiller resulted in the best mechanical properties. SEM morphological images demonstrate various defects, including interfacial behaviour, fibre breakage, fibre pullout, voids, cracks, and agglomeration.
Highlights
Composite materials are a versatile class of materials with excellent properties and applications
It is revealed that the addition of nano Al2O3 and MgO to the treated and untreated flax/PLA fibre reinforced hybrid composites increases tensile strength and modulus by transmitting and distributing the applied load
Once the load has been applied, the stress can be transferred from the polymer matrix to the reinforcing fibre, improving the tensile strength and modulus of the hybrid composite [31,52,57]
Summary
Composite materials are a versatile class of materials with excellent properties and applications. They are made up of two or more chemically distinct constituents, namely the matrix and reinforcement. Synthetic fibres are the most frequently used reinforcement in polymer composites, growing environmental concerns have recently encouraged the use of renewable resources. Biodegradable reinforcing materials such as natural fibres are the best substitute for synthetic fibres in the composite industry due to their technological and ecological advantages [2]. Natural fibre reinforced polymer composite (NFRPCs) are less expensive, more substantial, and environmentally-friendly [9]
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