A study on the effect of fiber loading and orientation on mechanical behaviour of jute fiber reinforced epoxy composites

Abstract

Now-a-days, the natural fibers from renewable natural resources offer the potential to act as a reinforcing material for polymer composites alternative to the use of glass, carbon and other man-made fibers. Among various fibers, jute is most widely used natural fiber due to its advantages like easy availability, low production cost and satisfactory mechanical properties. For a composite material, its mechanical behavior depends on many factors such as fiber content, orientation, types, length etc. Attempts have been made in this research work to study the effect of fiber loading and orientation on the mechanical behavior of jute fiber reinforced epoxy composites. Composites of various compositions with three different fiber loading (20wt%, 30wt% and 40wt%) and three different fiber orientation (0°, 30° and 60°) are fabricated using simple hand lay-up technique. It has been observed that there is a significant effect of fiber loading and orientation on the mechanical behavior of jute fiber reinforced epoxy composites. Finally, the morphology of fractured surfaces is examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM).