Effect of Red Mud and Copper Slag Particles on Physical and Mechanical Properties of Bamboo-Fiber-Reinforced Epoxy Composites

In the present work, a series of bamboo-fiber-reinforced epoxy composites are fabricated by using red mud and copper slag particles as filler materials. A filler plays an important role in determining the properties and behavior of particulate composites. The effects of these two fillers on the mechanical properties of bamboo-epoxy composites are investigated. Comparative analysis shows that with the incorporation of these fillers, the tensile strength of the composites increases significantly, whereas the flexural strength and impact strength decrease with increase in filler content (red mud and copper slag fillers) in the epoxy-bamboo fiber composites. The density and hardness are also affected by the type and content of filler particles. It is found that the addition of copper slag filler improves the hardness of the bamboo-epoxy composites, whereas the addition of red mud filler reduces the hardness value of bamboo-epoxy composites. The study reveals that the addition of copper slag filler in bamboo-epoxy composites shows better physical and mechanical properties as compared to the red-mud-filled composites.