Bamboo Epoxy Composites Research Articles

Design strategy of super tough hydrophobic bamboo framework composites with internal network entanglement reinforcing structure

The low strength and high hygroscopicity of natural bamboo limit its use in structural building materials. Herein, lignin and hemicellulose were partially removed from natural bamboo in order to create bamboo frameworks featuring well-aligned bamboo fibers. Subsequently, these bamboo frameworks (BF) are infused with epoxy resin (EP) modified with PDMS and subjected to hot-pressing to fabricate bamboo-epoxy composites (PDMS-EP/BF). The incorporation of flexible PDMS chains facilitated intermolecular chain entanglement, which inhibited crack propagation and improved the bonding between bamboo and EP. The findings of the research indicated that the PDMS-EP/BF composites exhibited a significant enhancement in flexural strength by 98%, modulus of elasticity by 129%, toughness by 399%, and tensile strength by 177% when compared to natural bamboo. Additionally, the modification led to a decrease in the surface energy of the composites, resulting in increased hydrostatic contact angle and imparting water repellency to the material. Compared to natural bamboo, PDMS-EP/BF has 309% higher water contact angle and 143% lower surface energy. In addition, large composites have been prepared and their interface strength was tested. The findings of the study offer insights into the potential enhancement of bamboo composites to achieve increased flexural strength, modulus, and toughness. This could expand the utilization and significance of bamboo in the realm of construction materials.

Experimental Investigations on Physical and Mechanical Properties of Hybrid Bamboo Composites

The present study aims to develop a novel hybrid composite by incorporating clamshell as a secondary reinforcing filler into a bamboo-epoxy composite. The primary objective of this hybridization is to optimize the synergistic benefits of each component, harnessing the strength of bamboo fibres, the durability of epoxy, and the cost-effective repurposing of the waste clamshell. Compression moulding was employed to develop composites with varying filler content (0- 9 wt%). The effect of filler on the physical and mechanical properties of bamboo-epoxy composites was evaluated by conducting tests as per ASTM standards. Experimental results show that the addition of clamshell filler significantly improved composites' properties, but there was a limitation to the addition. Hardness, tensile, and flexural properties were increased, whereas impact strength was reduced. Composites with 6 wt% clamshell exhibited optimum properties, enhancing tensile strength by 20.5% and flexural strength by 24.4 % compared to composites without filler. SEM analysis of fractured tensile and bending specimens revealed an enhanced fibre-matrix bonding with the inclusion of filler and supported the experimental results obtained. The outcome of this study contributes to sustainable development by using natural resources like bamboo fibre and repurposing seashell waste to create cost-effective composite material with enhanced properties.

Investigation on the effect of stacking order and hybridization on mechanical and water absorption properties of woven flax/bamboo composites

AbstractIn virtue of the performance of natural fiber reinforced composites, hybridization and stacking order play a crucial role in defining the behavior of engineering components. Furthermore, no studies have been reported on the mechanical and water absorption properties of woven flax/bamboo hybrid composites with different stackings. The present study investigates the influence of stacking sequences and hybridization of flax (F)/bamboo (B) epoxy composites on its mechanical and water absorption properties. The stacking sequence is varied as follows: B/F/F/B, F/B/B/F, F/B/F/B, F/F/B/B. A numerical model for interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) is developed and validated using ANSYS composite repost, which can predict the critical stresses and damage in each ply, as it is not possible through experimental studies. The tensile fractured surfaces are examined by scanning electron microscopy. Results indicate that the mechanical and water absorption of hybrid composite laminates are influenced by the stacking sequence. The optimum stacking order with maximum performance is obtained for B/F/F/B. The increase in tensile, flexural, impact, and ILSS values is observed as 8.3%, 25%, 4.4%, and 14.6%, respectively. The water diffusion coefficient is reduced by 34.75% by the addition of the bamboo layer to the skin. The computational analysis predicted the different modes of critical stresses and failures acting on each ply during the ILSS test.

A Comparative Study on the Mechanical Properties of Arundo Donax Epoxy Composites with Bamboo Epoxy Composites

A Comparative Study on the Mechanical Properties of Arundo Donax Epoxy Composites with Bamboo Epoxy Composites - written by Prathap K , Mr. Ravi Kumbar published on 2019/12/17 download full article with reference data and citations

Studies on Water Sorption Behaviour of Laminated Bamboo Polymer Composite

The aim of this article is to evaluate water absorption in bamboo fiber composites. Bamboo is hydrophilic, means that it easily absorbs water. In this study the bamboo fiber-based composites were developed using hand lay up method, with epoxy resin as the matrix constituent. Water absorption characteristics of specimens of bamboo composite and epoxy were determined from water immersion tests at several temperatures. Gravimetric analysis was performed to determine the moisure absorbed as a function of time at two different temperatures: 25 ºC and 50 C. The diffusivity of water in an epoxy bamboo composite was determined after reaching saturation point. During room temperature soaking, epoxy specimen showed the characteristic of Fickian behavior. Similar immersion tests on bamboo-epoxy composites followed nonfickian behavior. Changes in the mechanical properties of material due to water absorption were evaluated from tensile testing on materials with varied water content. It was found that the waterabsorption in all samples reduced the tensile properties. The degradation of tensile properties was greater with an increasing temperature of immersion. The results of this study emphasize the importance ofconsidering deterioration of mechanical properties in the bamboo epoxy composites during their application in water and possibly in humid environment.

Mechanical properties of bamboo reinforced epoxy sandwich structure composites

In the composite industry, natural fibres have great potential to replace synthetic fibres like carbon and glass, due to their low cost and environmentally friendly materials. Bamboo is emerging as a versatile reinforcing fibre candidate because this woody plant has a number of advantages, such as being naturally strong, biodegradable and abundantly available. In this study, a compression test with a crosshead displacement rate of 1 mm/min was conducted on square and triangular honeycomb core structures based on bamboo-epoxy composites so as to study their specific energy absorption. Both square and triangular honeycomb structures were manufactured by the slotting technique. Initially, a tensile test with the same crosshead displacement rate was conducted to study the tensile strength of unidirectional bamboo-epoxy composites with 0°, 45° and 90° fibre orientations. Bamboo-epoxy composite laminates were fabricated by applying a hand lay-up technique. The experimental data showed that the unidirectional bamboo-epoxy composite with 0° orientation offered the highest tensile strength. This indicates that the bamboo is stronger when parallel to the tensile axis. Meanwhile, the triangular honeycomb bamboo-epoxy structure offered about 10% more energy absorption than the square honeycomb structure, which indicates that the smaller cell size of honeycomb is able to absorb more energy than the bigger one.

Effect of Cenosphere Filler on Damping Properties of Bamboo-Epoxy Laminated Composites

This paper deals with evaluation of damping properties of natural fibre composites consisting of bamboo fibre as reinforcement, epoxy as matrix and cenosphere as particulate filler. Hand lay-up technique is used to fabricate the composites with varying number of layers and different weight percentage of cenosphere filler. The prepared specimens are subjected to free vibration test (FVT) to investigate the damping ratio and natural frequency. Damping of the bamboo–epoxy composites is analysed experimentally using cantilever beam test set up by impulse technique. The investigation reveals that the number of layers and cenosphere filler content influences the natural frequency and the damping ratio.

Effect of cenosphere on mechanical properties of bamboo–epoxy composites

Cenosphere is a ceramic-rich industrial waste produced during burning of coal in thermal power plants. This study deals with the effect of cenosphere as particulate filler on mechanical behaviour of natural fibre composites. The natural fibre composite consists of bamboo fibre as reinforcement and epoxy as matrix. The bamboo fibre is treated with alkali to improve its surface properties. The conventional hand lay-up technique is used to prepare different composite specimens. Twenty numbers of different composite specimens are prepared with varying number of laminae and filler content. The samples are analysed for their mechanical properties to establish the effect of varying filler content and the number of laminae. It is found that the mechanical properties are significantly influenced by addition of this waste-based ceramic filler.

Mechanical properties of bamboo-epoxy composites a structural application

In this study, the physical and mechanical properties of bamboo fiber reinforced epoxy composites were studied. Composites were fabricated using short bamboo fiber at four different fiber loading (0 wt%, 15 wt%, 30 wt% and 45 wt%). It has been observed that few properties increases significantly with respect to fiber loading, however properties like void fraction increases from 1.71% to 5.69% with the increase in fiber loading. Hence, in order to reduce the void fraction, improve hardness and other mechanical properties silicon carbide (SiC) filler is added in bamboo fiber reinforced epoxy composites at four different weight percentages (0 wt%, 5 wt%, 10 wt% and 15 wt%) by keeping fiber loading constant (45 wt%). The significant improvement of hardness (from 46 to 57 Hv) at 15 wt%SiC, tensile strength (from 10.48 to 13.44 MPa) at 10 wt% SiC, flexural strength (from 19.93 to 29.53 MPa) at 5 wt%SiC and reduction of void fraction (from 5.69 to 3.91%) at 5 wt%SiC is observed. The results of this study indicate that using particulate filled bamboo fiber reinforced epoxy composites could successfully develop a composite material in terms of high strength and rigidity for light weight applications compared to conventional bamboo composites. Finally, SEM studies were carried out to evaluate fibre/matrix interactions.

Stiffness and strength analysis of four layered laminate bamboo composite at macroscopic scale

Dry bamboo culms of Dendrocalamus strictus were processed into thin laminas and cold pressed using epoxy resin to produce four layered laminated bamboo epoxy composites (LLBCs). Experimental and theoritical values (stiffness and strength) of LLBCs, prepared from middle region laminae, have been evaluated under tensile loading and using rule-of-mixture respectively. Experimental values of LLBCs are closely resembles with theoretical values. Further, a hypothetical four layered unidirectional laminated bamboo composites (HLLBCs) have been proposed where their stresses and strains obtained using constitutive equation of laminate at macroscopic scale are lower than experimental failure limit of LLBCs. This indicates that proposed LLBCs behaves like fibrous composites which are presently in use for a variety of structural applications.

Dielectric and mechanical properties of alkali- and silane-treated bamboo-epoxy nanocomposites

Nanocomposites of silane- and alkali-treated bamboo fiber and epoxy resin incorporated with nanoclay were prepared. The possibility of obtaining relatively low dielectric constant (ε) bamboo-epoxy nanodielectrics with improved mechanical properties was demonstrated. Silane coupling agents and mercerization of bamboo mats resulted in decrease of dielectric constant (ε) and dissipation factor (Tan δ) of bamboo-epoxy composites due to decrease in orientation polarization by the reduction of hydrophilicity as compared to untreated composites. The tensile and flexural strength of alkali-treated bamboo-epoxy nanocomposites with 3 wt% nanoclay increased by 60% and 42%, respectively, as compared to pure composites. The minimum value of dielectric constant 1.77 at 1 MHz was obtained for mercerized aminopropyltriethoxy silane-treated bamboo-epoxy nanocomposites. Tan δ and ε decreased with increasing frequency for all the composites. Ultrasound sonication was used in the dispersion of nanoclay. Scanning electron microscope was used to investigate the nanoclay particles distribution inside the bamboo-epoxy nanocomposites.

Improved mechanical and thermal properties of bamboo–epoxy nanocomposites

AbstractNatural fiber‐reinforced hybrid composites based on bamboo/epoxy/nanoclay were prepared. Ultrasound sonication was used for the dispersion of nanoclay in the bamboo–epoxy composites. The morphology of bamboo–epoxy nanocomposites was investigated by using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X‐ray diffraction. The results show that there exists an optimum limit in which the mechanical properties of composites improved by continuously increasing the nanoclay content. The tensile and flexural strength of bamboo–epoxy nanocomposites with 3 wt% nanoclay increased by 40% and 27%, respectively, as compared to pure composites. The highest value of impact strength was obtained for 1 wt% nanoclay content bamboo–epoxy nanocomposites. The enhanced impact strength of bamboo–epoxy nanocomposites was one of the key advantages brought by nanofiller. The results show that incorporation of nanoclay substantially increases the water resistance capability and thermal stability of bamboo–epoxy nanocomposites. POLYM. COMPOS., 2012. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers

Effect of Red Mud and Copper Slag Particles on Physical and Mechanical Properties of Bamboo-Fiber-Reinforced Epoxy Composites

In the present work, a series of bamboo-fiber-reinforced epoxy composites are fabricated by using red mud and copper slag particles as filler materials. A filler plays an important role in determining the properties and behavior of particulate composites. The effects of these two fillers on the mechanical properties of bamboo-epoxy composites are investigated. Comparative analysis shows that with the incorporation of these fillers, the tensile strength of the composites increases significantly, whereas the flexural strength and impact strength decrease with increase in filler content (red mud and copper slag fillers) in the epoxy-bamboo fiber composites. The density and hardness are also affected by the type and content of filler particles. It is found that the addition of copper slag filler improves the hardness of the bamboo-epoxy composites, whereas the addition of red mud filler reduces the hardness value of bamboo-epoxy composites. The study reveals that the addition of copper slag filler in bamboo-epoxy composites shows better physical and mechanical properties as compared to the red-mud-filled composites.

Influence of chemical treatments on the mechanical and water absorption properties of bamboo fiber composites

Chemical surface modification of woven bamboo mat with maleic anhydride, permanganate, benzoyl chloride, benzyl chloride, and pre-impregnation were carried out. These modified fibers were used as reinforcements in epoxy and polyester matrices. The effects of fiber modification on the tensile, flexural, impact, and water absorption properties of the composites were investigated. Flexural properties of maleic anhydride treated bamboo polyester composites improved by nearly 50%. The tensile strength and modulus of permanganate-treated bamboo polyester composite increased by 58% and 118%. The tensile strength and modulus of benzoylated bamboo fiber polyester composite improved by 71% and 118%, respectively. After benzoylation of the bamboo fiber, the water absorption is 16% for the bamboo-epoxy composite compared to 41% by untreated bamboo-epoxy composite. The water absorption by benzylated bamboo reinforced polyester composite was 16.8% compared to 51% by untreated bamboo-polyester composite. Pre-impregnation improved the mechanical and water resistant properties of both epoxy and polyester-based composites. SEM investigations of the tensile fracture surfaces show that modifications improved the fiber—matrix interaction.

Effect of Ceramic Fillers on Mechanical Properties of Bamboo Fiber Reinforced Epoxy Composites: A Comparative Study

In order to obtain the favoured material properties for a particular application, it is important to know how the material performance changes with the filler content under given loading conditions. In this study, a series of bamboo fiber reinforced epoxy composites are fabricated using conventional filler (aluminium oxide (Al2O3) and silicon carbide (SiC) and industrial wastes (red mud and copper slag) particles as filler materials. By incorporating the chosen particulate fillers into the bamboo-fiber reinforced epoxy, synergistic effects, as expected are achieved in the form of modified mechanical properties. Inclusion of fiber in neat epoxy improved the load bearing capacity (tensile strength) and the ability to withstand bending (flexural strength) of the composites. But with the incorporation of particulate fillers, the tensile strengths of the composites are found to be decreasing in most of the cases. Among the particulate filled bamboo-epoxy composites, least value of void content are recorded for composites with silicon carbide filling and for the composites with glass fiber reinforcement minimum void fraction is noted for red mud filling. The effects of these four different ceramics on the mechanical properties of bamboo- epoxy composites are investigated and the conclusions drawn from the above investigation are discussed.

An Assessment of Erosion Wear Response of SiC Filled Epoxy Composites Reinforced with Glass and Bamboo Fibers

AbstractThe present work describes the processing and studies the erosion wear characteristics of bamboo fiber reinforced epoxy composites filled with SiC particulate. The mechanical properties of these composites are evaluated and are then compared with those of a similar set of SiC filled glass-epoxy composites. The solid particle erosion characteristics of the bamboo-epoxy composites have also been studied and the experimental results are compared with the reported erosion test results on glass-epoxy composites under similar test conditions by Biswas and Satapathy (2009). The influence of particulate filler on the erosion wear response of composites has been critically analyzed using Taguchi experimental design. This systematic experimentation has led to determination of significant process parameters and material variables that predominantly influence the wear rate of the particulate filled glass-epoxy and bamboo-epoxy composites. The comparative study indicates that although the bamboo based composites exhibit relatively inferior mechanical properties, their erosion wear performance is better than that of the glass-epoxy composites.

Studies on the Water Absorption of Bamboo-Epoxy Composites: The Effect of Silane Treatment

The effect of silane treatments on the water absorption properties of bamboo matting reinforced epoxy composites were investigated. Treatments using γ-Aminopropyltriethoxy silane, 3-trimethoxysilylpropyl methacrylate, Vinyltris(2-methoxyethoxy)silane, Bis[3-(triethoxysilyl)propyl] tetrasulfide, 3-aminopropyltrimethoxy silane and n-Octyltrimethoxy silane were carried out to study the water absorption property of the bamboo composites. Water absorption in the composites was studied by long-term immersion and 2 h boiling in distilled water. The process of absorption of water was found to follow the kinetics and mechanism described by Fick's theory. Only aminosilanes have shown the positive effects, but to a limited degree. It has been found that among the various silanes used only aminopropyltriethoxy silane treatment is suitable for bamboo-epoxy composite. Aminopropyltriethoxy silane-treated bamboo fiber composite has decreased the water uptake from 41.42% to 36.87%.

Bamboo fiber reinforced thermosetting resin composites: Effect of graft copolymerization of fiber with methacrylamide

AbstractEpoxy and polyester resins have been reinforced with methacrylamide (MAA) treated bamboo strip matting to develop bamboo fiber reinforced plastic composites. Bamboo mats were graft copolymerized with 1, 3, and 5% solution of MAA. The mechanical (tensile strength, elastic modulus, flexural strength, and flexural modulus), thermal, and water absorption properties of the composites were determined. One percent treatment of bamboo with MAA gave optimum results with epoxy resin. The mechanical properties were improved. TGA results reveal that the degradation temperature of the composite has improved after grafting. The weight loss of 1% MAA treated bamboo–epoxy composite reached a value of 95.132% at 795°C compared to 97.655% at 685°C of untreated bamboo–epoxy composite. Water absorption in the composites was studied by long term immersion and 2 h boiling in distilled water. The process of water absorption indicates Fickian mode of diffusion. MAA treatment results in reduced water uptake. There was improvement in the properties of pretreated bamboo‐polyester matrix composite as well. Three percent treatment of bamboo with MAA gave optimum results with polyester resin. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010

A comparative study on erosion characteristics of red mud filled bamboo–epoxy and glass–epoxy composites

Bamboo fiber reinforced epoxy matrix composites filled with different weight proportions of red mud (a solid waste generated in alumina plants) are fabricated. The mechanical properties of these composites are evaluated and are then compared with those of a similar set of glass–epoxy composites. The solid particle erosion characteristics of the bamboo–epoxy composites have been studied and the experimental results are compared with those for glass–epoxy composites under similar test conditions available in the published literature. For this, an air jet type erosion test rig and Taguchi orthogonal arrays have been used. The methodology based on Taguchi’s experimental design approach is employed to make a parametric analysis of erosion wear process. This systematic experimentation has led to determination of significant process parameters and material variables that predominantly influence the wear rate of the particulate filled composites reinforced with bamboo and glass fiber, respectively. The comparative study indicates that although the bamboo based composites exhibit relatively inferior mechanical properties, their erosion wear performance is better than that of the glass fiber reinforced composites. It further indicates that the incorporation of red mud particulates results in improvement of erosion wear resistance of both the bamboo and glass fiber composites.

Analyses of the mechanical properties and microstructure of bamboo-epoxy composites

Bamboo reinforced epoxy possesses reasonably good properties to waarrant its use as a structural material, and is fabricated by utilizing bamboo, an abundant material resource, in the technology of fibre composites. Literature on bamboo-plastics composites is rare. This work is an experimental study of unidirectional bamboo-epoxy laminates of varying laminae number, in which tensile, compressive, flexural and interlaminar shear properties are evaluated. Further, the disposition of bamboo fibre, the parenchymatous tissue, and the resin matrix under different loading conditions are examined. Our results show that the specific strength and specific modulus of bamboo-epoxy laminates are adequate, the former being 3 to 4 times that of mild steel. Its mechanical properties are generally comparable to those of ordinary glass-fibre composites. The fracture behaviour of bamboo-epoxy under different loading conditions were observed using both acoustic emission techniques and scanning electron microscopy. The fracture mode varied with load, the fracture mechanism being similar to glass and carbon reinforced composites. Microstructural analyses revealed that natural bamboo is eligibly a fibre composite in itself; its inclusion in a plastic matrix will help solve the problems of cracking due to desiccation and bioerosion caused by insect pests. Furthermore, the thickness and shape of the composite can be tailored during fabrication to meet specific requirements, thereby enabling a wide spectrum of applications.