Tensile and Compressive Properties of Glass Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Hybrid Composite with Eggshell Powder

Abstract

This paper explores the utilization of chicken eggshell powder (ESP) as a biofiller material in glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) composites. ESP has a very low density, is highly abundant, and is frequently disposed of as agriculture waste. This paper investigates the mechanical strength of the GFRP composites filled with 10 wt% to 40 wt% of ESP filler loading. The size of the ESP is 100 and 150 microns. The collected chicken eggshells were cleaned with clear water. The membrane of the eggshells was removed, dried, crushed, pulverized, and sieved to obtain the desired particle size. The GFRP laminates were manufactured using wet hand layup and resulted in a fiber volume fraction of 0.34. Findings reveal that the composite with a small ESP filler size shows superior strength in both tension and compression properties. The tensile strength and compressive strength increased by 18% and 30%, respectively, with the addition of 10 wt% of 100 µm ESP. The findings reveal the potential of eggshell wastes to be channeled toward the production of value-added composite materials for sustainable development.