Processing and characterization of fragrant screwpine fiber reinforced polymer composite

Abstract

In recent years, there has been an increased interest in using eco-friendly materials in engineering due to ever rising environmental awareness. As a result, the new eco-friendly natural cellulosic fiber was identified from the prop roots of the Fragrant Screw Pine (FSP) plant for the present study and then, they are extensively characterized to be considered as a replacement for man-made fiber for use in light weight bio-based composite material applications. This fiber was analyzed by chemical, physical, Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy, X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and thermo gravimetric analysis to establish the suitability of using them as novel reinforcement in the polymer matrix composites. The density of the FSP fiber was found to be approximately 1.3852 g/cm3. Its high cellulose content (73.10%) and little wax content (0.35%) provided good specific strength and better bonding properties. The raw fiber had a Tensile strength of 531-915 MPa, Young s modulus of 21-33 GPa and an average strain to failure of 4.59-7.83%. Thermal analysis (TG and DTG) ensured thermal stability of the fiber up to 235°C. This research also deals with the characterization of alkali treated fibers that are from the prop roots of the Fragrant Screw Pine (FSP) plant newline