Investigation of the mechanical, absorption, flammability and swelling properties of graphene filled sisal/glass fiber reinforced polymer hybrid nanocomposites

Abstract

Hybrid graphene filled glass/sisal fiber-reinforced epoxy nanocomposites were successfully synthesized with different weight percentages (0%, 0.25%, 0.5%, 0.75% and 1%) of graphene nanoplatelets. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of weight fraction of graphene on the mechanical and physical properties of the hybrid glass/sisal fiber-reinforced epoxy nanocomposites such as tensile, flexural, hardness, density, void content, flammability, water absorption and thickness swelling. The hybrid nanocomposites were fabricated using the vacuum bag-assisted hand lay-up technique. Different layup sequences were achieved by changing the position of the glass/sisal fiber layers, maintaining a total of five layers in each composite. The obtained results suggested that the addition of 1% graphene nano filler into the sisal/glass hybrid composite enhanced the tensile strength by 49.7% and Young’s modulus by 60%. Among GNP reinforced hybrid composites, highest value of toughness (16 J) was found in case of the composite containing 1 wt.% GNP. However, when 0.5% of GNPs were added in the composite, the flexural strength and modulus reached a maximum of 306 MPa and 25 GPa, respectively, which are 228% and 362% greater than sisal/glass hybrid composites. The water absorption of the composite sample containing 0.5% GNPs was 4.62% lower than those of other hybrid glass/sisal fiber reinforced epoxy composite. Furthermore, addition of 0.5 wt% GNP resulted in a decrease in the burning rate of the hybrid composite from 11.22 mm/min to 7.6 mm/min and from 23.13 mm/min to 20.18 mm/min, respectively.

Keywords:

• Graphene
• sisal/glass hybrid composite
• tensile and flexural properties
• water absorption
• flammability

Reviewing Editor:

• Ian Phillip Jones, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Subjects:

• Mechanical engineering
• materials science
• production engineering
• manufacturing engineering

Authors’ contributions

The experiments were conducted by B.K and G. R, who also conceptualized the article and authored the initial draft of the paper. A. M and M.K.K were analysed the experimental data and was responsible for performing editing tasks, composing the review, and engaging in correspondence about the article. L.K.S were contributed the final draft and frame the paper and provided technical guidance and contributed to the experimental work during the writing process of the article. A.B.A were contributed in writing – review and editing, validation. All authors have read and approved the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have influenced the work reported in this study.

Data available statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Bodduru Kamesh

Bodduru Kamesh is Assistant Professor of the Department of Mechanical Engineering (Design and Manufacturing) in the School of Engineering and Technology, Sharda University, India. He holds a full time Ph.D. from Sharda University, specializing in Honeycomb Cored Sandwich Composite on Static and Structural Dynamics. He earned his M. Tech. in Mechanical Engineering (Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing) from Gayatri Vidya Parishad College of Engineering (Autonomous), Visakhapatnam, and B. Tech in Mechanical Engineering from Kakinada Institute of Engineering & Technology affiliated to JNTU University Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh. His interests encompass Static, Mechanical and Dynamics of composite structures, Honeycomb Structures and Hybrid sandwich modelling. He has an impressive publication record with over twelve research papers in SCI indexed high-impact factor international journals.

Ravali Gude

Ravali Gude Currently, Ms. Gude is pursuing B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from Gayatri Vidya Parishad College of Engineering, India. She has done her schooling in Amar English medium school with 9.8 GPA. Her education involved projects investigating composite materials and mini projects like designing a Drum Brake in CATIA V5. Also, she has volunteered for the National Service Scheme (NSS). Her area of interest is in Material Science, Strength of Materials and Thermodynamics.

Amrita Maddamsetty

Amrita Maddamsetty Currently, Dr. Amrita is working as Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Gayatri Vidya Parishad College of Engineering (Autonomous) (GVPCE), Visakhapatnam, India. She has completed her PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University Hyderabad. Dr. Amrita has 20+ tears of teaching and research experience and her area of specialization includes metal cutting, composites, nano-fluids and optimization techniques.

Mesfin Kebede Kassa

Mesfin Kebede Kassa has worked extensively in the area of computational structural mechanics and computational materials sciences. He did his Ph. D. from Sharda University and is currently associated with Kombolcha Institute of Technology, Wollo University, Kombolcha, Ethiopia and Ethiopian Aviation University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He has publication is several reputed journals including Polymer Composites, International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics, Journal of Vibration Engineering & Technologies, Fibres and Polymers etc.

Lavish Kumar Singh

Lavish Kumar Singh has completed his B. Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from NIT Patna in 2012 and M. Tech. from NIT Calicut in 2014. Subsequently, he completed his Ph.D. from IIT Kharagpur. Currently, Dr. Singh is working as Assistant Professor in the School of Engineering, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India. He has more than 40 publications in different SCI/Scopus indexed journals. Dr. Singh has also presented his research work in several reputed conferences held in different IITs and abroad (Ireland and USA). His research of interest includes composite materials, nanomaterials, mechanical testing and microstructural analysis.

Ananda Babu Arumugam

Ananda Babu Arumugam is a Professor and Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering in the School of Engineering and Technology, Sharda University, India. Dr. Ananda Babu obtained his doctorate from Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Vellore in the area of composite structural dynamics. He obtained his B.E-Manufacturing Engineering in College of Engineering, Guindy, Chennai, and his M.E- Engineering Design in PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore from Anna University. He has experience of about thirteen years in both teaching and research. His area of research interest includes dynamics of composite structures, damage modeling, hybrid materials modeling, and failure analysis of structures. He has published more than forty research papers in peer-reviewed international journals with high impact factors.