Development and Performance Analysis of Jute Fiber and Alumni Powder Reinforced Phenol Formaldehyde Hybrid Composites

Increasing worldwide environmental awareness is encouraging scientists and engineers to concentrate on eco - friendly components available in natural resources. Continuous search is on by academic research and Industrial research for new materials since 20 th century. Composites, the wonder material with lightweight, high strength-to-weight ratio and stiffness properties have come a long way in replacing the conventional materials like metals, woods etc. Therefore, Composites of polymers both (thermoset and thermoplastic) with available natural resources received greater focus. Combination of materials with identifiable interface is denoted as composite. Composite has really revolutionized the concept high strength and low weight concept. Further natural fiber reinforce components are strong, stiff, light weight, recyclable with high mechanical properties, high electrical insulation properties for breakdown resistance Filler reinforced material consists of fillers embedded in or bonded to a polymer matrix with distinct inter phases. The fillers can be in the form of plastics, fibers, whiskers or flakes. The combination of filler with the matrix and natural fiber produces enhanced values of mechanical properties that cannot be achieved by either of the constituents acting alone. Composite Polymers are extensively used in many engineering applications such as automotive, sports goods, marine, electrical, industrial, household appliances, more sustainable construction and packing materials. General tendency of man is to lead a comfortable life. For this, he needs new and useful material. Composite materials allow a great versatility of designs and offer many advantages over conventional materials. Polymer matrix can be processed at room temperature compared to other types of matrixes. Due to the availability various thermosetting resins such as epoxy, viny Lester, polyester, phenolic polyamides, cyanate ester etc. It is noted that though continuous search of composites is on at various Countries, scope for further requirements of human race is still to be explored in present work, Alumni powder with jute fiber reinforced phenol formaldehyde composites have been planned to make hybrid composite samples as per ASTM standards, using hand layup process. The treated and untreated samples of composites with variable percentage weights fiber loading will be used for testing the mechanical properties and thermal properties as per ASTM standards. Further evaluation of chemical resistance and electron microscopy (SEM) will be conducted for the performance of the composites. Recently, the demand for reinforced plastics from natural, sustainable, biodegradable, and environmentally friendly fibers has been rising worldwide. However, the main shortcoming of natural fibers reinforced plastics is the poor compatibility between reinforcing fibers and the matrix. Hence, it is necessary to form a strong attachment of the fibers to the matrix to obtain the optimum performance. In this work, chemical treatments (acid pretreatment, alkali pretreatment and scouring) were employed on jute fibers to modify them. The mechanical properties, surface morphology, and Fourier transform infrared spectra of treated and untreated jute fibers were analyzed to understand the influence of chemical modifications on the fiber. Then, jute fiber/epoxy composites with a unidirectional jute fiber organization were prepared. Basic properties of the composites such as the void fraction, tensile strength, initial modulus, and elongation at break were studied. The better interfacial adhesion of treated fibers was shown by scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of fractured coupons. Hence, the chemical treatment of jute fiber has a significant impact on the formation of voids in the composites as well as the mechanical properties of jute fiber composites applications as in aerospace, automotive, medical science and marine industries. In this paper the mechanical behavior of jute fiber-aluminum (Al) powder polymer composite has been investigated experimentally. The materials selected for the studies were jute fiber and aluminum powder as the reinforcement and epoxy resin as the matrix. The hand lay-out technique was used to fabricate these composites. Composite plates were prepared by incorporating jute fiber and aluminum powder at 8 and 16 volume percent in epoxy matrix. Results showed that the overall tensile strength, impact property, hardness, young’s modulus and comparison of strength of hybrid composites (reinforced by both powder and fiber) is higher than other single reinforced composites. By incorporation of natural fibers and metal powder into the polymer, the mechanical properties almost enhanced to greater extent. It can thus be inferred that jute fiber and Al powder can be a very potential candidate in making of composites for low load bearing.