Abstract
The study intended to utilizing waste organic fiber for low-cost semi-flexible substrate fabrication to develop microstrip patch antennas for low band communication applications. All the semi-flexible substrates (12.2 wt. % OPEFF/87.8 wt. % PCL, 12.2 wt. % NiO/87.8 wt. % PCL, and 25 wt. % OPEFF/25 wt. % NiO/50 wt. % PCL) were fabricated by oil palm empty fruit fiber (OPEFF) mixed with nickel oxide (NiO) nanoparticles reinforced with polycaprolactone (PCL) as a matrix using a Thermo Haake blending machine. The morphology and crystalized structure of the substrates were tested using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometry, X-ray diffraction (X-RD) technique, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. The thermal stability behavior of the substrates was analyzed using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermogravimetric (DTG) thermogram. The dielectric properties were characterized by an open-ended coaxial probe (OEC) connected with Agilent N5230A PNA-L Network Analyzer included the 85070E2 dielectric software at frequency range of 8 to 12 GHz. The experimental results showed that NiO/OPEFF/PCL composites exhibit controllable permittivity dielectric constant between 1.89 and 4.2 (Farad/meter, (F/m)), with loss factor between 0.08 and 0.62 F/m, and loss tangent (tan δ) between 0.05 and 0.18. Return losses measurement of the three patch antennas OPEFF/PCL, NiO/PCL, and OPEFF/NiO/PCL are −11.93, −14.2 and −16.3 dB respectively. Finally, the commercial software package, Computer Simulation Technology Microwave Studio (CSTMWS), was used to investigate the antenna performance by simulate S-parameters based on the measured dielectric parameters. A negligible difference is found between the measured and simulated results. Finally, the results obtained encourage the possibility of using natural fibers and nickel oxide in preparation of the substrates utilize at microwave applications.
Highlights
In recent years, the microstrip patch antenna has been utilized widely in wireless communication technology due to its optimum size and miniature shape characteristics
Were performed to determine the influence of nickel oxide (NiO) and oil palm empty fruit fiber (OPEFF) filler on the crystalline behavior of composites were performed to determine the influence of NiO and OPEFF filler on the crystalline the NiO/OPEFB/PCL composites
X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of all materials under test were scanned in the range behavior of the NiO/OPEFB/PCL composites
Summary
The microstrip patch antenna has been utilized widely in wireless communication technology due to its optimum size and miniature shape characteristics. Several materials with conductive or non-conductive dielectrics properties are used to manufacture this type of flexible antenna [1]. This is prompting for more efforts in intensive research aimed at developing substrates or artificial materials for applications in the areas of electrical and wireless communication such that they have lightweight, ease of fabrication, low cost, less power consumption, and excellent compatibility with planar integrated circuits and even non-planar surfaces [2,3]. To the development of the substrates that are used at electrical and wireless communication and for the achievement of the cost balance and performance, one or more kinds of materials are incorporated into a single matrix [6]. Since the modulus of inorganic particles is normally much higher than that of polymeric resins, the presence of inorganic particles in the composites would significantly influence the stress transfer from matrix to neighboring fibers [7,8]
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