ENHANCEMENT OF MECHANICAL BEHAVIOUR THROUGH HYBRIDIZATION OF KENAF WITH BASALT FIBER IN REINFORCED VACUUM BAGGED POLYMER COMPOSITE

Abstract

Many researchers concentrate on designing and developing natural hybrid fiber-reinforced composites due to their tremendous merits in terms of mechanical and thermal behaviors, and biodegradability. The present work developed hybrid composites using the vacuum bagging method with woven kenaf and basalt fiber reinforcement. Six hybrid composites, with five stacks in six different stacking sequences, were produced and compared with five stacks of layered composite made of individual basalt and kenaf fiber, respectively, to analyze mechanical properties, such as tensile, flexural, compression, impact, hardness, thickness swelling and water absorption, according to ASTM standards. Results revealed that the tensile, compressive and flexural properties, as well as water absorption (hydrophobic behaviour) and thickness swelling, of basalt fiber reinforced laminates were better compared with those of kenaf fiber-reinforced laminates and of kenaf and basalt fiber hybrids. Laminates with basalt fiber as the outermost layer showed good hardness and impact strength results. Morphological analyses were carried out on fractured composite samples, using scanning electron microscopy to study the failure modes.