Hybridization Effect of Micro Fillers on Mechanical, Thermal and Morphological Behavior of PA66/PP Blend Based Hybrid Thermoplastic Composites

Abstract

This article deals with the effect of hybrid fillers on mechanical, thermal and morphological behavior of hybrid fiber reinforced thermoplastic composite materials. Three material systems were selected: 80 wt% Polyamide66 and 20 wt% Polypropylene (PA66/PP) compatibilized blend as matrix (Blend), 10 wt% short glass fibers and 10 wt% short basalt fibers reinforced blend (BG) and micro fillers (PTFE, SiC and Alumina) filled hybrid composites (BGF). These composite materials were prepared by melt mix method with the help of twin screw extrusion technique. The mechanical properties were studied through tensile, flexural and impact behavior as per ASTM methods. Experimental results revealed that the effect of hybrid fibers enhanced greatly in terms of tensile and flexural behavior. But slight decrease in impact strength was observed. But the addition of micro fillers into hybrid fiber filled composites slightly decreased the strength of the composites. This might be due to the loss of ductility as a result of filler addition. The thermal stability of composites was studied through DSC technique to analyze the degree of crystallinity. But the effect of reinforcements decreased the degree of crystallinity due to loss in enthalpy. Further, the thermal stability of composites was studied through TGA. This study proved that the effect of reinforcement acted as resistance to weight loss of composites at different temperatures. The morphological study of the fractured surfaces of the composites through scanning electron microscope (SEM) images indicated that the fiber pull out and fiber fracture were the reasons for the failure of composite materials.