Effect of surface treatment on flax fiber reinforced natural rubber composite

Title : Effect of surface treatment on flax fiber reinforced natural rubber composite

Abstract:

The dwindling fossil resources and growing environmental issues have stimulated research into the development of novel eco-friendly materials. In the realm of engineering design, material selection is critical in the manufacturing of a sustainable product. The sustainability of the natural fibre based composite materials has led to an upsurge in its applications in various manufacturing sectors ensuring the potential and competitiveness of the industries in the global market. The present research is an attempt to develop and study the mechanical properties of the flax fibre reinforced natural rubber green composites. The surface properties of flax fibres were modified by alkali, enzyme and dry heat treatment methods in order to improve the interfacial adhesion between the fibres and the matrix, thereby improving the stress transfer efficiency. The effects of these treatments on the properties of natural fibres are discussed. This study focused on the effect of fibre treatments on surface characteristics, physical and mechanical properties of the flax fibre reinforced natural rubber composite. Fibres loading of 20, 30, 40 and 50% and lengths 1, 1.25 and 1.5 cm were optimized to get the optimum fibre composition for the reinforcement. Curing characteristics showed that ts₂ and t₉₀ decreased with increasing fibre loading at 150°C. Untreated and surface-modified fibre composites prepared on 40% fibre load and 1.25 cm length were characterized and examined for mechanical and physical properties. The FTIR, XRD analyses show that the hydrophilicity of flax fibres was greatly reduced by significant reduction in non cellulosic component and peak intensity OH group of the fiber, the cellulose microfiber rearrangements was higher for dry heat treatment and alkali treatment. The crossectional surface image shows improvement in fibre dispersion and interfacial adhesion for treated fiber composites assessed by SEM analysis. The effectiveness treatments were estimated by reduction in water absorption and moisture absorption compared to untreated composites. It has also been found that the hardness and aerial density of the treated fibres have no significant difference with varying treatments. The tensile strength of the material was better in alkali and laccase treated flax reinforced rubber composites. On contrary, the dry heat treatment composites showed relatively low strength as the high temperature has weakened the individual strength of the fibre.

Keywords: Fiber treatments, Natural fibre composite, Green composites, Natural rubber, Mechanical properties

Biography:

Dr. Seiko Jose is a scientist, working at Central Sheep and Wool Research Institute, Avikanagar, Rajasthan, India. He is specialized in Textile Chemistry and having more than 18 years of experience in textiles.  He is having seven years of experience in the cotton, silk, and linen processing industry.  In the past eleven years of his research, he has handled many natural fibres like, jute, pineapple leaf fibre, coconut fibre, flax, silk, wool, ramie, etc. He contributed to 58 research articles and 19 book chapters. His major research areas are extraction and characterization of natural fibre, utilization of agro residues, textile dyeing and finishing, eco-friendly textile processing, nano technology and fibre composites. His current Google citations are more than 2000. He edited 6 books in the field of textiles, and composites with reputed publishers namely Wiley and Elsevier. He managed 15 industrial consultancy works in the national and international level. Currently is holding the position of Editor in 8 Journals.