Fiber Reinforced Hybrid Composites Research Articles

Granite Powder Influence on the Static Mechanical Properties of Tapsi fiber-reinforced Hybrid Composites: A Comparative Study

ABSTRACT Strength, weight, stiffness, environmental friendliness, and ease of manufacture are the key considerations for the selection of materials for today’s engineering applications. In this study, the hybrid composite was developed by reinforcing the alkali-treated tapsi fiber and micro granite filler into a polyester matrix using the hand lay-up method. Tapsi fiber is inexpensive, available in abundance, and the necessary amount of fiber needs to be prepared with minimal effort. Micro granite powder is one of the unused industrial wastes produced by the granite industry. Five different hybrid composite samples were created by keeping the tapsi fiber content constant at 20 wt.% and altering the micro granite powder content in polyester resin from 0 wt.% to 20 wt.%. Mechanical properties such as tensile, flexural, and impact strengths were evaluated to assess the hybrid composite’s load-bearing capabilities. Other characterizations such as FTIR and SEM are conducted to verify the applicability of hybrid composites in temperature, chemical, and humid environments. In addition, the tracing of chemical bonds for hybrid composites can be done using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). The load-bearing capacity and transferability of the hybrid composite were solely based on the bonding of the fiber reinforcement, the filler, and polymer resin.

Multi-objective optimal design of carbon and glass reinforced hybrid composites based on design rules

An optimisation study on the carbon and glass fibre reinforced hybrid composites in three-point bending is presented in this paper. For both unidirectional and multi-directional hybrid composites, the flexural properties were obtained by Finite Element Analysis (FEA)-based simulation. Several design rules were derived, and optimisation was done by applying these rules, with minimising the cost and weight being the objectives and the flexural strength being the constraint. The results from the design rule-based optimisation were compared with those from the non-dominated sorting GA-II (NSGA-II).

Effect of stacking sequence of glass and jute fiber reinforced polymer composites on their low velocity impact properties

This paper investigated the effect of stacking sequence on the low velocity impact behavior of glass and jute fiber reinforced hybrid composites. The hand layup method is used to fabricate the composites with various stacking sequences. The low velocity impact analysis was carried out at various impact energies, namely 5 J, 10 J and 15 J. Dye penetrant inspection (liquid penetrate inspection) was performed to analyses the damage area in the composites. Compression after impact (CAI) testing was conducted to study the compression strength of the composites after the impact. The study revealed that the jute fiber composites exhibited better results in terms of energy absorption, but the damage area of the composites was higher, compared to the other specimens fabricated. Meanwhile, hybrid composite S7 presented high energy absorption and the minimum damage area. To conclude, the hybrid composite S7 appeared to have the optimum formulation, showing better results in energy absorption, with lower damage and higher compression strength.

Mechanical and Water Absorption Properties of Jute/Palm Leaf Fiber-Reinforced Recycled Polypropylene Hybrid Composites

Hybrid composites have proven endless benefits to the research communities in terms of environmental friendliness, mechanical properties, and development of new material. The present work explores the tensile, flexural, impact strengths, and water absorption properties of jute and palm leaf fiber-reinforced hybrid composites. Five types of hybrid composites were fabricated by varying jute and palm leaf fiber percentage of J100:P0, J25:P75, J50:P50, J25:P75, and J0:P100% with a constant weight ratio of polypropylene matrix. The findings showed that jute-palm leaf fiber-reinforced composite had positive effect on tensile, flexural, and impact strength. Experimental results showed that the J25:P75% (jute and palm leaf fiber) exhibited the highest tensile strength of 62.2 MPa and flexural strength of 82.26 MPa due to the optimal interfacial properties between the fibers and matrix. The impact strength of composites increased as the proportion of palm leaf fiber increased. Water absorption increased with jute fiber content, reaching a maximum of 1.26% at composite J100:P0, with lower water absorption at J0:P100% composite due to the higher moisture content of jute fiber.

Studies on mechanical and thermal properties of cellulosic fiber fillers reinforced epoxy composites

AbstractEnvironment protection is the current theme for many industries by utilizing biodegradable natural fibers for products development. The growing awareness of the environmental harm caused by synthetic materials has resulted in the emergence of eco‐friendly materials. This work aims to fabrication of jute, bamboo, and coir fiber reinforced hybrid composites (12 combinations) with the analysis of mechanical, thermal, and morphological properties. The tensile and flexural tests reveal that the composite JC8 (21% jute, 1.5% coir, 7.5% bamboo) exhibited maximum tensile and flexural strengths of 129.3 and 98 MPa respectively due to higher cellulose constituents in jute and bamboo fibers that resulted in higher degree cellulose polymerization with the epoxy matrix, and also the capability of tension and bending resistance. The combined effect of hybrid fibers stiffness and strong interfacial adhesion were also the reason for maximum flexural strength. The thermal stability of all the composites was remains the same, and considerable weight loss was observed between the ranges of 200 and 500°C. Overall, the hybrid composite JC8 has 21% jute, 1.5% coir, and 7.5% bamboo on the basis of volume percentage exhibited a maximum tensile strength, flexural strength, thermal stability and better surface morphology than other hybrid composites.

Static and fatigue tensile properties of carbon/glass hybrid fiber-reinforced epoxy composites

The static and fatigue tensile properties of high-strength polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based carbon (IMS60) and electronic (E)-class glass (E-glass) hybrid fiber-reinforced epoxy matrix composites (HFRPs) were investigated. The fiber orientations of the HFRP specimens were set to unidirectional with [(0(IMS60))/(0(E-glass))]S (subscript S means symmetry and [(0(IMS60))/(0(E-glass))/(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))]), [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))2]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))3]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))5]S, [(0(E-glass))2/(0(IMS60))]S, [(0(E-glass))3/(0(IMS60))]S, and [(0(E-glass))5/(0(IMS60))]S. Under static loading for the [(0(IMS60))/(0(E-glass))]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))2]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))3]S, and [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))5]S HFRP specimens, the stress applied to the specimen was almost linearly proportional to the strain until failure. However, the tensile stress–strain curves of the [(0(E-glass))2/(0(IMS60))]S, [(0(E-glass))3/(0(IMS60))]S, and [(0(E-glass))5/(0(IMS60))]S HFRP specimens had a complicated shape (jagged trace). The Weibull statistical distributions of the tensile strength values were also examined. The Weibull moduli for the [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))2]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))3]S, [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))5]S, [(0(E-glass))2/(0(IMS60))]S, [(0(E-glass))3/(0(IMS60))]S, and [(0(E-glass))5/(0(IMS60))]S HFRP specimens were higher than those for the mono carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy (CFRP) and glass fiber-reinforced epoxy (GFRP) specimens. Under fatigue loading, the fatigue properties of the HFRP specimens showed CFRP-dominant behaviour at high stress levels and GFRP-dominant behaviour at low stress levels. The fatigue properties of the HFRP specimens increased with increasing volume fraction of CFRP in the following order: ([(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))5]S > [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))3]S > [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))2]S > [(0(IMS60))/(0(E-glass))]S > [(0(E-glass))/(0(IMS60))]S > [(0(E-glass))2/(0(IMS60))]S > [(0(E-glass))3/(0(IMS60))]S > [(0(E-glass))5/(0(IMS60))]S).

Experimental study of carbon/glass fiber-reinforced hybrid laminate composites with torsional loads by using acoustic emission and Micro-CT

In this work, a torsion experiment was carried out on composite specimens with different off-axis angles to study the damage-evolution behavior of carbon/glass fiber-reinforced hybrid composites. The results show that the off-axis angle can improve the toughness of the specimen during the torsion process and enhance anti-torsion performance in the early stage. After applying Micro-CT and scanning-electron-microscope (SEM) technology, the damage distribution for a composite specimen under torsion was determined. AE technology for monitoring the entire torsion process was also applied, and for damage characterization post-processing based on Fuzzy C-Means (FCM) cluster analysis was performed on collected AE signals. AE signals were clearly divided into three categories that correspond to three damage modes, and frequency characteristics of the AE signal for each damage mode were found. The results can offer guidance for structural health monitoring (SHM) for composites under torsion.

Effect of graphene nanoplatelets on mechanical and impact properties of an aramid/glass-reinforced epoxy composite

Abstract This study aims to characterize and evaluate the effects of graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs) added to the epoxy matrix and the fiber stacking sequence on the mechanical and impact responses of carbon/aramid hybrid composites. For this purpose, Aramid/Glass/Aramid and Glass/Aramid/Glass stacking sequences as well as full Aramid and Glass fiber configurations were used in an epoxy matrix with various contents (0.1, 0.25, 0.5 wt%) of GnPs. Tensile and flexural tests were conducted per mechanical characterization and low-velocity impact (LVI) tests with 30 J impact energy were performed by a drop-weight impact test. According to results, aramid fiber location has a significant effect on the peak load values, absorbed energy, and displacement of the hybrid composites. In addition, the inclusion of 0.25 wt% GnPs into the epoxy matrix increased the LVI properties of pure glass and hybrid fiber-reinforced composites. However, the incorporation of GnPs into the epoxy matrix caused a deterioration in the LVI properties of the aramid fiber-reinforced composite plates. Moreover, the best increase in the mechanical properties of pure and hybrid fiber-reinforced composites was obtained by adding 0.1 and 0.25% wt% GnPs into the epoxy matrix.

Synthesis, Characterization, and Modeling of Aligned ZnO Nanowire-Enhanced Carbon-Fiber-Reinforced Composites.

This paper presents the synthesis, characterization, and multiscale modeling of hybrid composites with enhanced interfacial properties consisting of aligned zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowires and continuous carbon fibers. The atomic layer deposition method was employed to uniformly synthesize nanoscale ZnO seeds on carbon fibers. Vertically aligned ZnO nanowires were grown from the deposited nanoscale seeds using the low-temperature hydrothermal method. Morphology and chemical compositions of ZnO nanowires were characterized to evaluate the quality of synthesized ZnO nanowires in hybrid fiber-reinforced composites. Single fiber fragmentation tests reveal that the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) in epoxy composites improved by 286%. Additionally, a multiscale modeling framework was developed to investigate the IFSS of hybrid composites with radially aligned ZnO nanowires. The cohesive zone model (CZM) was implemented to model the interface between fiber and matrix. The damage behavior of fiber was simulated using the ABAQUS user subroutine to define a material’s mechanical behavior (UMAT). Both experimental and analytical results indicate that the hierarchical carbon fibers enhanced by aligned ZnO nanowires are effective in improving the key mechanical properties of hybrid fiber-reinforced composites.

The Effect of Use of Different Types of Matrix Material on Mechanical Characteristics in Jute/Carbon Fiber Reinforced Hybrid Composites

The use of natural fibers in the automotive industry as potentially renewable and environmentally friendly materials is increasing day by day. Natural fiber reinforced polymer composites are also replacing traditional materials in the vehicle interior and exterior of the current automobile industry. This study focuses on the fabrication of hybrid composite materials reinforced with jute fibers and carbon fibers using two different thermoset resins such as epoxy and polyester. During this production, vacuum assisted resin transfer molding production technique was utilized. The hybrid composites were evaluated for tensile strength and hardness characterization. The surface morphology of the specimens broken after the mechanical tests were scrutinized using scanning electron microscopy. Results reveal that in the use of polyester resin in tensile strength, there is 3.29 times increase in hybrid structures compared to pure jute composites, and in the case of using epoxy resin there is 3.66 times increase in tensile strength. In the comparison of microhardness values, hybrid composites formed with jute/carbon fabric and polyester resin have a hardness value 1.6 times higher than structures with pure jute fabric and polyester resin. Hybrid composites formed with jute/carbon fabric and epoxy resin have 1.64 times higher hardness than the structure made with pure jute fabric and polyester resin. In the analysis of the surface morphology of the produced composite structures, it has been revealed that the mechanical features and physical characteristics give compatible results.

Experimental Investigations on Dry Sliding Wear Behavior of Kevlar and Natural Fiber-Reinforced Hybrid Composites through an RSM-GRA Hybrid Approach.

The present work aimed to investigate the dry sliding wear behaviors of hybrid polymer matrix composites made up of Kevlar, bamboo, palm, and Aloe vera as reinforcement materials of varying stacking sequences, along with epoxy as the matrix material. Three combinations of composite laminates with different stacking sequences such as AB, BC, and CA were fabricated by a vacuum-assisted compression molding process. The influence of composite laminates fabricated through various stacking sequences and dry sliding wear test variables such as load, sliding distance, and sliding velocity on the specific wear rate and co-efficient of friction were investigated. Experiments were designed and statistical validation was performed through response surface methodology-based D-optimal design and analysis of variance. The optimization was performed using grey relational analysis (GRA) to identify the optimal parameters to enhance the wear resistance of hybrid polymer composites under dry sliding conditions. The optimal parameters, such as composite combinations of CA, a load of 5 N, a sliding velocity of 3 m/s, and a sliding distance of 1500 m, were obtained. Furthermore, the morphologies of worn-out surfaces were investigated using SEM analysis.

Statistical modeling and optimization of density in a novel carbon/jute fiber reinforced hybrid composite

Nowadays, researchers are inclined toward developing lightweight materials with high mechanical and tribological properties. The density of the material plays a significant role in influencing the weight and tribological behaviour of developed composite. The present work has developed a novel hybrid composite consisting of carbon and jute fiber as reinforcement and porcine bone powder (PBP) as filler. Statistical model using response surface methodology technique has been developed to predict the density (ρ) of the material. Further, the influence of various factors such as wt.% of PBP powder, the particle size of PBP, and the effect of alkali treatment of jute fiber on the density of the material have been studied. The Central composite design (CCD) approach was used to generate a set of 20 experiments, and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) technique was used to study the effect of factors having a significant effect (i.e., p > 0.05) on the density of the material. The experiments revealed that among the various factors, the influence of bone particle size was most significant (68.3%) on the material density, followed by the size of bone wt.% (17.4%). Whereas alkali treatment has the least influence (7.8%) on the density of a material. Further, optimization was performed using the genetic algorithm (GA) to determine the optimum parameters.

Investigation of Jute and Glass Fibre Reinforced Hybrid Composites Manufactured through Compression Molding Process

Expensive and non-biodegradable synthetic fibres are commonly utilized as reinforcement in composites for better mechanical properties. The eco-friendly and low-cost properties of natural fibres are promising alternative reinforcement for composites. In this study epoxy-based glass and jute fibres reinforced hybrid composites are fabricated varying fibre stacking sequences, 1jute-1glass alternatively (j-g-j-) and 4glass-9jute-4glass (4g-9j-4g). Hybridization of jute and glass fibre results better tensile, flexural and water absorption properties than only jute fibre reinforced composites but inferior to only glass fibre reinforced composites. The 4g-9j-4g stacking sequence resulted in better mechanical and water absorption properties than j-g-j-- stacking sequence. The effect of chemical treatment and glass microfiber infusion are also investigated. Chemically treated jute fibre and 2 wt.% microfiber infused hybrid composite shows about 42% improvements in flexural strength as compared to untreated and without microfiber infused composites. However, fibre chemical treatment and microfiber do not have a positive impact on tensile strength.

Effect of Fiber Constitution in Matrix on Cyclic Behavior of Pva-Steel Hybrid Fiber-Reinforced Cementitious Composites Columns with Mild Steel Rebar

Effect of Fiber Constitution in Matrix on Cyclic Behavior of Pva-Steel Hybrid Fiber-Reinforced Cementitious Composites Columns with Mild Steel Rebar

Investigation for natural fiber reinforced hybrid composite

Natural fiber reinforced hybrid composite is developed to meet the environment friendly and sustainable demand of industry. Jute and sisal fibers are mixed in different composition to produce Jute-Sisal-Epoxy hybrid composites using hand layup methods. Hybrid composites are developed by mixing 15% of fiber fraction by weight with 85% epoxy resin and hardener. Both are mixed respectively in the ratio of 70 to 30. Tensile test and moisture absorption test have been carried out according to ASTM standard to determine the most appropriate fiber combination. It has been observed that moisture gain was highest in 100% sisal fiber composite and decreases gradually with raise in the percentage of jute fiber. However, tensile strength was highest for sisal fiber composite as compared to jute fiber.

Effect of industrial wastes as epoxy modifiers on mechanical characteristics of E-glass fiber reinforced hybrid composites

Utilization of industrial waste is an important aspect in order to reduce the cost of disposal, environmental pollution, usage of natural resources and cost of production. In the present study, it is aimed to make use of various industrial wastes like Coal Dust (CD), Cement By Pass Dust (CBPD), Coal Fly Ash (CFA), Marble Powder (MP), mixture of Coal Dust and Coal Fly Ash (CDCFA), mixture of Coal Dust and Cement By Pass Dust (CDCBPD) and mixture of Coal Dust and Marble powder (CDMP) in the compositions of 0 wt%, 2.5 wt%, 5 wt%, 7.5 wt%, and 10 wt% along with E- Glass fiber at 50 wt% and Epoxy resin in proportion with the industrial wastes to prepare the hybrid composites slabs or laminates of size 300X300 mm2. These slabs are cut into specimens for mechanical characterization as per ATM standards. The Mechanical Characteristics like Tensile Strength, Flexural Strength, Interlaminar Shear Strength, Impact Strength and Hardness were determined. From the results it is observed that the composites filled with CDCFA at 10 wt% has exhibited the maximum Impact Strength of 2098 J/m and Hardness of 61H. The maximum Tensile strength is obtained for the composite filled with CDCFA at 2.5 wt%. The maximum flexural strength and Interlaminar Shear Strength of 857.22 MPa and 35.86 MPa respectively were observed in the composites filled with CDCBPD at 10 wt%. This study of mechanical characterization shows that addition of industrial wastes can enhance the mechanical properties compared to the composites prepared without fillers. The use of these industrial wastes in the large scales to prepare the composites can reduce the fabrication cost as well environmental pollution and disposal problems.

Mechanical property characterization of water hyacinth and glass fiber reinforced hybrid composite

While composites of natural fibers have got more attraction because of their advantages, there are some limitations. Therefore, hybridization is a way to minimize some of the limitations of natural fibers composite. This article reports on the study conducted to investigate the mechanical properties of a hybrid glass/water hyacinth reinforced polymer composite using five different forms of volume fractions. The hybrid composite was prepared by hand lay-up method according to ASTM D3410 and ASTM D3039 standards for compression and tensile tests, respectively. The material properties of the composite were analyzed to explore the influence of fiber volume fraction. The results indicate that the mechanical properties change as a function of the volume fraction. Thus, the addition of glass fibers influenced the results of both tensile and compressive properties.

Erosion characteristics of epoxy-based Jute, Kenaf and Banana fibre reinforced hybrid composites

In this research work erosion characteristics of bio-based fibres such as jute, kenaf, banana fibre reinforced epoxy hybrid composites were experimentally investigated. Hybrid composites with different stacking sequences of fibres were fabricated by compression moulding method. Erosion wear behavior of hybrid composites were studied using air jet erosion tester as per the ASTM G76 standards. The effect of impingement angle, and exposure duration on the erosion rate of the hybrid composites were analyzed. The results indicated that the erosion rate of hybrid composites increased with the increase in exposure times. Further, maximum erosion rate was observed at 60° of impingement angle for majority of the composite specimens. This proves hybrid composites are semi ductile materials in nature.

Effect of walnut powder reinforcement on the mechanical properties of biodegradable natural flax/hemp fibre-based composites

Biomaterials created from raw materials are gaining appeal in the industrial sector due to their high quality, sustainability, and environmental considerations. Combining two types of fibres may enhance the fundamental properties of organic fibre-reinforced hybrid polymeric materials. Natural fibre-reinforced hybrid composites were created using a compression moulding process, using coir fibre, hemp fibre, polypropylene, and montmorillonite Walnut Powders used in this work. The effects of a fibre blend and vermiculite on mechanical performances and biodegradable characteristics were studied. Both the coir and hemp fibres were alkali-treated to diminish their hydrophilic character before the process. The mechanical attributes of the produced lightweight materials were evaluated by UTM equipment, resulting in improvements following the mixing of fibre and particle inclusion. The composite's good biocompatibility and water absorption capabilities were increased by mixing fibres, but particle additions seemed to have the opposite impact.

A Review of Recent Advances in Hybrid Natural Fiber Reinforced Polymer Composites

Natural fiber reinforced polymer composites (NFRCs) have demonstrated great potential for many different applications in various industries due to their advantages compared to synthetic fiber-reinforced composites, such as low environmental impact and low cost. However, one of the drawbacks is that the NFRCs present relatively low mechanical properties and the absorption of humidity due to the hydrophilic characteristic of the natural fibre. One method to increase their performance is hybridization. Therefore, understanding the properties and potential of using multiple reinforcement’s materials to develop hybrid composites is of great interest. This paper provides an overview of the recent advances in hybrid natural fiber reinforced polymer composites. First, the main factors that affect the performance of hybrid fiber-reinforced composites were briefly discussed. The effect of hybridization on the mechanical and thermal properties of hybrid composites reinforced with several types of natural fibers (i.e., sisal, jute, curauá, ramie, banana, etc.) or natural fibers combined with synthetic fibers is presented. Finally, the water absorption behaviour of hybrid fiber-reinforced composites is also discussed. It was concluded that the main challenges that need to be addressed in order to increase the use of natural-natural or natural-synthetic hybrid composites in industry are the poor adhesion between natural fibers and matrix, thermal stability and moisture absorption of natural fibers. Some of these challenges were addressed by recent development in fibers treatment and modification, and product innovation (hybridization).