Study on the effects of fiber orientation on the mechanical properties of natural fiber reinforced epoxy composite by finite element method

Abstract

Natural Fibers being environment friendly and sustainable materials are gaining the interest of scientists, researchers and industrialists all over the world. Natural Fibers composite being lighter and cheaper than the synthetic fiber composites are seen as a scope for advancement in the ever evolving field of material science. Moreover, natural fibers unlike synthetic fibers are biodegradable in nature which draws the eyes of environmentalists towards them in these high times. In the present study, the optimization of most commonly discussed natural fiber reinforced composites such as Banana fiber, Jute fiber, Kenaf fiber, Hemp fiber and Pineapple Leaf fiber (PALF) on the basis of fiber orientation has been discussed. Finite element models of each fiber reinforced epoxy composite was prepared at constant fiber volume percent of 30% with fiber orientation angles of 0°, +22.5°/−22.5°, 45°/−45°, +67.5°/−67.5° and 90° measured from horizontal axis. The models were loaded for different standard loading conditions, i.e., tensile, flexural, and hardness test. From the results it was observed that for tensile and flexural test all the fibers showed minimum stress at the orientation of 0° and 90°. In Brinell harness test, composites with 45o angle of orientation shows the best results.