Mechanical Characterization of Areca husk-Coir fiber reinforced hybrid Composites

Bio fiber based composite materials are gaining interest in the field of certain engineering applications because of their easy processing, low cost, low density and higher strength to weight ratio. In the present study, randomly oriented short Areca Husk and Coir fibers were reinforced with unsaturated polyester resin for the fabrication of composites. The fibers were pretreated with sodium hydroxide to enhance the interphase bonding between the fibers and matrix material. Specimens were prepared and tested for tensile strength, flexural, hardness and impact strength as per respective ASTM standards. The results revealed that individual areca husk fiber reinforced specimens shows improved performance in all properties over coir fiber reinforced specimens. However the hybrid composite specimens test results shows average values as compared to individual fiber reinforced composites. (c) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.