Affiliations 

  • 1 Institute of Advanced Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia
  • 2 School of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310, Malaysia
  • 3 Razak Faculty of Technology and Informatics, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Jalan Sultan Yahya Petra, Kuala Lumpur 54100, Malaysia
  • 4 Laboratory of Biocomposite Technology, Institute of Tropical Forestry and Forest Products (INTROP), Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia
  • 5 Institute of Microengineering and Nanoelectronics, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi 43600, Malaysia
  • 6 Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Jalan Sultan Yahya Petra, Kuala Lumpur 54100, Malaysia
Polymers (Basel), 2021 Sep 29;13(19).
PMID: 34641159 DOI: 10.3390/polym13193343

Abstract

This study investigates the mechanical, thermal, and chemical properties of basalt/woven glass fiber reinforced polymer (BGRP) hybrid polyester composites. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was used to explore the chemical aspect, whereas the dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and thermomechanical analysis (TMA) were performed to determine the mechanical and thermal properties. The dynamic mechanical properties were evaluated in terms of the storage modulus, loss modulus, and damping factor. The FTIR results showed that incorporating single and hybrid fibers in the matrix did not change the chemical properties. The DMA findings revealed that the B7.5/G22.5 composite with 7.5 wt% of basalt fiber (B) and 22.5 wt% of glass fiber (G) exhibited the highest elastic and viscous properties, as it exhibited the higher storage modulus (8.04 × 109 MPa) and loss modulus (1.32 × 109 MPa) compared to the other samples. All the reinforced composites had better damping behavior than the neat matrix, but no further enhancement was obtained upon hybridization. The analysis also revealed that the B22.5/G7.5 composite with 22.5 wt% of basalt fiber and 7.5 wt% of glass fiber had the highest Tg at 70.80 °C, and increased by 15 °C compared to the neat matrix. TMA data suggested that the reinforced composites had relatively low dimensional stabilities than the neat matrix, particularly between 50 to 80 °C. Overall, the hybridization of basalt and glass fibers in unsaturated polyester formed composites with higher mechanical and thermal properties than single reinforced composites.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.