Characterization and Computational Analysis of Mechanical and Physical Properties of fly ash filled Coir/Glass-Epoxy Hybrid Composites

Abstract

The physical and mechanical properties of hybrid coir and glass fiber reinforced epoxy composites filled with fly ash powder were studied in this study. Three different composite variants were fabricated by manual hand lay-up technique by varying the Fly ash filler content (0 wt.%, 5 wt.% and 10 wt.%) keeping the weight percentages of E-glass fiber (20 wt.%) and coir fiber (10 wt.%) constant. The experimental results reveal that the incorporation of Fly ash filler has a significant influence on the physical, mechanical and water resistance properties of the hybrid composites. The overall density and micro-hardness of the composites increases continuously with increase in Fly ash content with 10 wt.% composition showing the maximum hardness.Further, the strength of the filler is also effective in reducing the internal voids, leading to a significant decrease in moisture uptake rate. The 10 wt.% sample showed the lowest water absorption after 24 hours. On the other hand, optimum values of tensile, flexural and impact performance are obtained only at a threshold of 5 wt.% Fly ash loading. However, at 10 wt.% concentration a clear strength degradation takes place beyond this limit which is attributed to particle agglomeration, poor mixing of matrix-reinforcement and reduced interfacial adhesion.