Influence of accelerated weathering on the properties of flax reinforced PLA biocomposites

Abstract

The aim of the present study is to investigate the influence of accelerated weathering conditions (temperature and humidity) on the mechanical and physical properties of the flax fibre reinforced poly lactic acid (PLA) biocomposites. Two different types of biocomposites namely New Non-woven (NNW) and Conventional Non-woven (CNW) were developed for this study. After 500 h of exposure to humid environment with 95% relative humidity at 30 and 60 °C temperatures, the mechanical (tensile and flexural) and physical (surface roughness and hardness) behaviours were evaluated and compared with that of the dry specimens. Tensile and flexural properties were found to decrease significantly upon 500 h of exposure to accelerated weathering. The tensile strength of the biocomposite specimens exposed to 30 °C temperature and 95% RH demonstrated noteworthy improvement. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray micro CT images of fractured surfaces showed delamination, plasticization of matrix and fibre debonding due to exposure to various environmental conditions.