Water Absorption Behaviour and Its Effect on the Mechanical Properties of Flax Fibre Reinforced Bioepoxy Composites

By E. Muñoz, Juan A. Garcia-Manrique. 2015

297 citations recorded by the source corpus.

In the context of sustainable development, considerable interest is being shown in the use of natural fibres like as reinforcement in polymer composites and in the development of resins from renewable resources. This paper focuses on eco-friendly and sustainable green composites manufacturing using resin transfer moulding (RTM) process. Flax fibre reinforced bioepoxy composites at different weight fractions (40 and 55 wt%) were prepared in order to study the effect of water absorption on their mechanical properties. Water absorption test was carried out by immersion specimens in water bath at room temperature for a time duration. The process of water absorption of these composites was found to approach Fickian diffusion behavior. Diffusion coefficients and maximum water uptake values were evaluated; the results showed that both increased with an increase in fibre content. Tensile and flexural properties of water immersed specimens were evaluated and compared to dry composite specimens. The results suggest that swelling of flax fibres due to water absorption can have positive effects on mechanical properties of the composite material. The results of this study showed that RTM process could be used to manufacture natural fibre reinforced composites with good mechanical properties even for potential applications in a humid environment.

Subfields: Mechanical Engineering, Mechanics of Materials, Polymers and Plastics

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/b1526071acb6d0e3f988473e9117b0332fe704a2

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Mechanical Engineering

1. M. Gupta
2. S. Sapuan
3. M. Jawaid
4. Z. Leman
5. P. Sahu
6. Mainul Islam
7. Andreas Öchsner
8. Anisur Rahman

In Mechanics of Materials

1. M. Gupta
2. P. Sahu
3. S. Sapuan
4. Mainul Islam
5. Andreas Öchsner
6. Anisur Rahman
7. M. Jawaid
8. G. Francucci

In Polymers and Plastics

1. M. Gupta
2. M. Jawaid
3. S. Sapuan
4. Mohamad Ridzwan Ishak
5. Z. Leman
6. P. Sahu
7. Mainul Islam
8. Andreas Öchsner

Citations in the corpus

• Water absorption behavior of cellulosic fibres polymer composites: A review on its effects and remedies (2020, methodology): “[52] produced flax fibre reinforced bio epoxy composites to examine 12 Journal of Industrial Textiles 0(0)”
• Flax fiber and its composites: An overview of water and moisture absorption impact on their performance (2018, methodology): “Generally, plant fiber reinforced composites have a tendency to significantly decrease their tensile and flexural properties and interfacial strength in wet conditions.2,77 The effect of water absorption on the mechanical properties of the flax fiber/bio-epoxy composites has been evaluated by Munoz ”
• A review on the characterisation of natural fibres and their composites after alkali treatment and water absorption (2017, background): “Similar characteristics on swelling and increase of moisture uptake of the composite with the increase in fibre loading have been reported by Munoz and Garcia for the flax fibres [79].”