Tribological and mechanical fracture performance of Mediterranean lignocellulosic fiber reinforced polypropylene composites

Abstract

AbstractNatural fiber‐reinforced polymeric composites are considered one of the newest materials in the industry. Ecological concerns have led to a growing need of using ecofriendly materials. This work aimed to study the dynamic and quasi‐static performance as well as tribological characteristics of Mediterranean lignocellulosic fiber‐reinforced polypropylene composites. Various types of Jordanian lignocellulosic fibers were utilized in the study, namely, hay, lemon, palm, and reed. Composites with various reinforcement structures were designed, prepared, and utilized for the investigations. Wear performance and coefficient of friction as well as various mechanical performance characteristics including tensile strength, tensile modulus, elongation to break, and impact strength were performed. Results have demonstrated that composites have led to different significant characteristics. The hay/polypropylene composites were revealed to have good mechanical performance enhancements. Their maximum value of the tensile modulus was 1557.2 MPa in the case of 30 wt% fiber content. It was also demonstrated that their maximum value of toughness was about 1031 kJ/m3 in the case of 20 wt% fiber content. However, the increase of fiber loading more than 20 wt% was found to make negative effects on the toughness characteristics. Moreover, it was found that most of the considered Jordanian lignocellulosic fibers were capable of enhancing most of the mechanical performance characteristics of the composites, particularly, the stiffness property. The coefficient of friction was also found variable with fiber loading as well as fiber type. The maximum coefficient of friction value was for the composites with 30 wt% hay, while the lowest was found for composites that contained palm and reed at 10 wt%. The work had demonstrated that the features of Jordanian natural fibers were potential and competitive regarding their elasticity, toughness, interfacial adhesive potency, accessibility, and polypropylene compatibility due to their desired intrinsic mechanical characteristics. This would contribute to the finding of low‐cost environmentally friendly materials for various bio‐product applications with reliable mechanical performance, and could attribute more sustainable design possibilities.