Processing and Characterization of Strychnos nux-vomica Fiber Reinforced Epoxy based Composite Material

Abstract

Polymer Matrix Composites (PMC) consist of thermoset or thermoplastic matrix resins reinforced by fibers which can be used in various sectors like aircraft, aerospace, automobile, marine, bio-medical, industrial, electrical, safety equipment, sports goods, and structural application. Because PMC exhibit lightweight, high stiffness and their high strength along the direction of their reinforcements. The synthetic fiber material is used in polymer composite which causes environmental pollution, and its material cost is high. In this study, natural fiber is identified and Strychnos nux-vomica fiber reinforced composite is fabricated using compression molding process. It can also be used as alternative reinforcement for FRP (Fiber Reinforced Polymer) composite material. The composition of epoxy and nuxvomica fiber in wt% are varied as 70:30, 60:40, and 50:50. The mechanical properties, namely tensile strength, flexural load, and impact energy are measured for nux-vomica fiber reinforced composite. From the results, it is found that the maximum mechanical properties such as tensile strength (14.93 MPa), flexural load (1.76 kN), and impact energy of 4 J are obtained at composition of 50:50 in wt%.