Properties of nylon-6-based composite reinforced with coconut shell particles and empty fruit bunch fibres

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© 2018 Taylor & Francis. This is an Author's Original Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Plastics, Rubber and Composites: Macromolecular Engineering, 2018, available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/14658011.2017.1418711Peer-Reviewed
yesAccepted for publication
2017-12-14
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Novel natural fibre composites of nylon-6 reinforced with coconut shell (CS) particles and empty fruit bunch (EFB) fibres have been investigated. Fillers were alkali treated before melt compounding with nylon-6. Mechanical, thermal and rheological properties of composites were measured. Tensile modulus was found to improve with both fillers up to 16% for nylon-6/CS composite and 10% for nylon-6/EFB composite, whereas a moderate increase in tensile strength was observed only with CS composites. Differences in the strengthening mechanisms were explained by the morphology of the two fillers, empty fruit bunch fibres having a weaker cellular internal structure. Observation of composite morphology using SEM showed that both fillers were highly compatible with nylon-6 due to its hydrophilic nature. Both fillers were found to cause a slight drop in crystallinity of the nylon matrix and to lower melt viscosity at typical injection moulding strain rates. Moisture absorption increased with addition of both fillers.Version
Accepted ManuscriptCitation
Savetlana S, Mulvaney-Johnson L, Gough T and Kelly AL (2018) Properties of nylon-6 based composite reinforced with coconut shell particles and empty fruit bunch fibres. Plastics, Rubber and Composites: Macromolecular Engineering. 47(2): 77-86.Link to Version of Record
https://doi.org/10.1080/14658011.2017.1418711Type
Articleae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
https://doi.org/10.1080/14658011.2017.1418711