Mechanical and Fracture Properties of Recycled Cellulose Fibre Reinforced Vinyl-ester Nanocomposites

Alhuthali, Abdullah; Low, It-Meng

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Authors

Alhuthali, Abdullah

Low, It-Meng

Date

2010

Type

Conference Paper

Metadata

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Citation

Alhuthali, A. and Low, I.M. 2010. Mechanical and Fracture Properties of Recycled Cellulose Fibre Reinforced Vinyl-ester Nanocomposites, in Teh, K. and Davies, I. and Howard, I. (ed), 6th Australasian Congress on Applied Mechanics (ACAM 6), Dec 12 2010. Perth, WA: Engineers Australia.

Source Title

Proceedings of the 6th Australasian Congress on Applied Mechanics (ACAM 6)

Source Conference

6th Australasian Congress on Applied Mechanics (ACAM 6)

ISBN

978-0-85825-941-6

School

Department of Imaging and Applied Physics

URI

http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/28141

Collection

Curtin Research Publications

Abstract

Compared to their synthetic counterparts, natural fibres are an environmentally friendly alternative demonstrating several attractive attributes including lower density, and lower cost. Vinyl-ester resin eco-composites reinforced with recycled cellulose fibre sheets (RCFs) have been fabricated in this study. Nanocomposites of vinyl-ester resin dispersed with nano-clay platelets was synthesized and studied. The mechanical properties, such as flexural strength, impact strength, impact toughness, and fracture toughness were evaluated. Porosities of all groups of samples have been investigated. Results indicated that strength properties decreased for nano-composites samples due to the poor dispersion of nanofiler and the existence of voids within the samples. In contrast, impact toughness and fracture toughness found to be improved for all RCFs reinforced samples. Finally, micro-structure of nano and eco-nanocomposites were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with the results discussed.