Mechanical properties of natural fiber/synthetic fiber reinforced polymer hybrid composites

Abstract

Natural fiber composites are often poorer in properties, mostly mechanical, compared to synthetic fiber composites. A possible solution to this issue is the use of natural fiber/synthetic fiber combination in polymer hybrid composites. Although the biodegradability of the composites is compromised by synthetic fibers, this is compensated by the improvement in their mechanical and physical properties. Hybrid composites use more than one kind of fibers in the same matrix and the idea is to get the synergistic effect of the properties of both fibers on the overall properties of composites. There has been a significant increase in research on natural fiber/synthetic fiber hybrid composites in recent years. Natural fibers are mostly hybridized with glass fibers because of their comparable properties and low cost. Some studies, however, have been done on hybridization of natural fibers with the more expensive carbon and aramid fibers. The natural fibers mostly used in these studies are hemp, jute, coir, flax, sisal, and ramie. Conventional thermosets and thermoplastics and biodegradable polymers have been used as matrix material for these composites. There is a considerable improvement in mechanical properties of these composites following hybridization, especially when synthetic fiber plies are used as skin and natural fiber plies are used as core. Various natural fiber surface treatments have been used to improve their interfacial adhesion with the matrices and, hence, their mechanical properties. This chapter aims to present an overview of the work done on the mechanical properties of these hybrid composites.