Preparation and characterization of basalt fiber (BF) reinforced acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)/cocoanut fiber (CF) hybrid composites: Study on mechanical, thermal and viscoelastic properties

The shift towards natural fiber reinforcements in thermoplastic composites is gaining momentum, replacing traditional synthetic fibers like glass fiber. Among inorganic fibers basalt fiber (BF) stands out for its superior mechanical properties and broad industrial applications. This study focuses on developing Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS)/cocoanut fiber (CF) blend reinforced with varying BF concentrations (0, 10, 20, and 30 wt%). The ABS/CF blend as the matrix (95:5 ratio) was compounded using a two roll mill, followed by NaOH treatment of BF and compression molding for the preparation of composites. Whie a 10 wt% of BF addition resulted in the decrease in performance, but higher BF concentrations led to significant improvements. Notably, the addition of 30 wt% of BF enhanced the tensile strength by 4.74% and the specific tensile strength by 18.25%. Flexural strength and modulus also increased by 13.71% and 51.36% respectively. Furthermore, the storage modulus exhibited notable improvement across 30 – 85°C, while the impact strength improved by 72.7%. The heat deflection temperature (HDT) raised from 83°C to 96.2°C, marking 15.9% enhancement in HDT. The findings of this research work underscore the potential of BF in enhancing the mechanical, viscoelstic, and the thermal properties of ABS based composites.