Mechanical characterization of walnut shell powder-reinforced neem shell liquid composite

Abstract In order to achieve total biodegradability in polymer materials, researchers are looking into natural polymer matrices and fillers to replace the existing partially biodegradable polymers and particle-filled composites. This work focuses on using a natural polymer matrix derived from neem shells as a hosting medium and walnut shell powder as a particle filler. Mechanical characterization is carried out, which includes an examination of tensile strength, modulus, thermal conductivity, and impact strength. The composite specimens, which contain varied weight fractions of walnut shell powder, are tested. The results show that increasing weight fractions leads to significant improvements in mechanical qualities. At a 25% weight fraction, the tensile strength increases by 57.5%, while the flexural strength improves by 59.09%. Additionally, at a 30% weight fraction, the impact strength shows a remarkable increase of 282%, whereas thermal conductivity decreases by 36.36%. These findings highlight the potential of natural reinforcements in biodegradable polymer composites, demonstrating their ability to enhance mechanical performance while reducing thermal conductivity and find applications in the automotive industry, construction, packaging goods, and biocompatible materials for prosthetics and implants.