Ramie Fiber Woven Composite: The Effect of Number of Layers of Woven Fibers on the Thrust Force in the Drilling Process

Abstract

Composite material is a combination of two or more materials to obtain better properties and capabilities of the constituent materials. Applications for the use of composites can now be found in industrial equipment to household appliances. To produce these products required machining process. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of the number of layers of woven fiber and the diameter of the drill bit on the thrust of the ramie woven fiber composite in the machining process. The research method was based on ASTM D 5766/D 5766M-02 (Standard Test Method for Tensile Strength Open Hole Laminated Polymer Matrix Composites), the method of making composite material specimens using the hand lay-up method, and the drilling process was carried out with various machining parameters such as composite thickness with variations of 3 layers, 4 layers, 5 layers, and without layers (0 layers). The maximum thrust value obtained was 153.54 ± 3.3 N, with 5 layers of hemp fiber reinforcement, the highest feed rate was 0.15 mm/rev, and the lowest spindle speed was 88 rpm, while the minimum thrust value was 29.52. ± 3.12 N with 0 layers of ramie fiber reinforcement, and the lowest feed rate is 0.05 mm/rev with the highest spindle speed of 1500 rpm.