Narrow Results

This paper studies the effects of plain-woven fabrics of jute and cotton, used as reinforcements, on the mechanical properties of composite panels prepared using epoxy and polylactic acid (PLA) resins as matrix materials. Two different composites were prepared in the current study — natural fiber fabrics reinforced thermosetting epoxy resin and the same fabrics reinforced thermoplastic PLA resin. Two methods were used to manufacture these composites. The thermosetting composites were manufactured by impregnating the epoxy resin with the fabrics by hand lamination. On the other hand, the resin film method was used to manufacture the thermoplastic composites. Tensile, compression and 3-point bending tests were performed on the composite panels. The experimental results indicated that the compressive strengths of cotton/PLA and cotton/epoxy composites are approximately equivalent. The jute-based composites exhibited brittle failure in the tensile test. Furthermore, the 3-point-bending break strength of the cotton/PLA composites was higher than that of the jute/PLA composites.

The biodegradable natural jute threads (JT) were braided into jute flag ropes (JFR) by a flag braiding machine first. Then, JT and JFR were woven into plain-woven jute thread fabrics (JTF) and jute flag rope fabrics (JFRF), respectively, by using a dobby loom. Subsequently, JTF and JFRF were impregnated with polylactic acid (PLA) resin to become JTF/PLA and JFRF/PLA composites, respectively. These JTF/PLA and JFRF/PLA composites are biodegradable. The tensile, compressive, and bending characteristics of these composites were examined by a material test system (MTS 810). In addition, the impact properties of these composites were evaluated by an Izod tester. The experimental results show that the braiding technique strengthened the jute ropes. The JFRF/PLA composite has high tensile strength, compressive modulus, bending modulus, and impact resistance

This paper represents the nanomechanical properties of various loading levels of montmorillonite clay filled polyester composites and randomly distributed jute fiber reinforced hybrid composites through Vickers micro-hardness test. The study of indentation fracture mechanics in polymer materials is a simple and cost-effective technique for the determination of fracture toughness. Ultrasonication technique was used to disperse the clay in the polyester matrix. The hand layup method was adapted to prepare the test specimens. Incorporation of 5wt.% montmorillonite clay into the polymer matrix results in an enhancement in hardness of 26.52% and the modulus of elasticity increased from 4205.21MPa for neat polyester to 5051.46MPa with the addition of clay. Fracture toughness was observed to depend on the montmorillonite clay content, and the maximum value was observed at 5wt.% nanoclay and 25wt.% jute fibers. The results show that the increase in the fiber content reduces the crack propagation in hybrid composites and increases the fracture toughness. To predict the crack size, the scanning electron microscope images are used.

This paper presents the tribological examination of various percentages of montmorillonite nanoclay-filled polyester composites and jute fiber reinforced hybrid composites by the Pin on Disc wear testing method. The wear rate and coefficient of friction were investigated for each composition with the working parameters like applied load (10,20,30N), sliding speed (3m/s), and sliding distance (1500m). The reduction in the wear rate was found on the inclusion of 5wt.% clay and 25wt.% jute fiber and further addition of fiber changes the trend due to the reduced matrix concentration. The wear mechanism of the worn-out surface samples was studied using scanning electron microscopy.

In recent years, biocomposites are developed to tackle the environmental legislation towards sustainable growth with renewable resources. Biocomposites are the most promising materials owing to their high strength-to-weight ratio and competitive cost. Among several biocomposites, Jute fiber and wood plastic composites (WPC) are preferred due to their wide applicability and availability. Abrasive water jet machining (AWJM) is a proven process for machining such biocomposites as it overcomes the drawbacks of conventional machining processes such as delamination and heat generation. In this work, experimental investigations for the effect of AWJM process parameters such as Standoff Distance, Traverse Speed and Water Pressure on responses Surface Roughness (Ra) and Kerf Taper Angle (Ta) for Jute Fiber and WPC through nanoabrasives-assisted AWJM have been carried out. The experiments are designed using response surface methodology (RSM) and further optimized using a genetic algorithm (GA). It is observed that water pressure is the most significant parameter irrespective of the material since higher pressure always yields better results compared to the lower pressure owing to the kinetic energy (impact) and molecular dynamics of abrasives. Further, this work explores the applicability of nanosized aluminum oxide as abrasives and results show that nanoparticles have significantly improved the surface finish.