The impact of fire retardants on the mechanical and thermal characteristics of hemp fiber-reinforced polylactic acid composites

Abstract

The concern for the global pollution and emissions hazards is increasing with the increased awareness of the harms of the pollution and its effects on eco-system, the solution is the biodegradable materials, that can reduce the pollution. The biodegradable materials are less thermal resistant. This study’s aim is to determine the optimized mechanical attributes of the bio-composite with the fire retardants. The polylactic acid (PLA) and hemp fibers were used as the matrix and reinforcement respectively, the fire retardants used were ammonium polyphosphate (APP) and silicon dioxide (SiO2) nano-particles. The specimens of Neat PLA and PLA with 10, 20, 30 & 40 percent hemp fiber were manufactured, and examined, the PLA with 20 % hemp fibers demonstrated the highest mechanical properties. Further, the 20 % hemp fiber composite tested with three percentages of fire retardants, the 12 % APP & 2 % SiO2 showed the highest mechanical properties.