A micromechanical approach to elastic modulus of long-term aged chicken feather fibre/poly(lactic acid) biocomposites

The modulus of elasticity is a critical parameter for the performance design and analysis of biofibre-based biocomposite materials. As a result of criteria such as internal heterogeneity, the random distribution of fibres and the success of interfacial adhesion between the fibre and the matrix, it becomes difficult to predict the modulus of elasticity in practical ways. Therefore, one of the aims of this study is to determine the modulus of elasticity of biocomposite material reinforced with discontinuous and random fibres by means of micromechanical models and experimentally. In addition, it is also aimed to reveal which micromechanical model can be used reliably in predicting the modulus of elasticity of both aged and non-aged biocomposite materials due to the relationship between the analytical and experimental results. In order to achieve these objectives, initially, chicken feather fibre/poly (lactic acid) biocomposite specimens having 2, 5 and 10 % chicken feather fibre mass fractions were mixed and manufactured by extruding, and subsequently, tensile test specimens according to the appropriate standard were formed by the injection-moulding method. An agreement between the moduli of elasticity obtained from 6 micromechanical models and experimentally from the slope of the stress-strain curves resulting from tensile tests was determined.

Automated summary

The modulus of elasticity is a critical parameter for the performance design and analysis of biofibre-based biocomposite materials. It is difficult to predict the modulus of elasticity due to factors such as internal heterogeneity and interfacial adhesion. This study aims to determine the modulus of elasticity of biocomposite materials reinforced with discontinuous and random fibres using micromechanical models and experiments, and to compare the reliability of different models in predicting the modulus of elasticity for aged and non-aged materials.