Mechanical, thermal, and water absorption properties of wheat straw/bagasse-reinforced epoxy blended composites

Abstract

This study is to investigate the mechanical, thermal, and water absorption properties of wheat straw and bagasse fiber-reinforced epoxy blended composites. To enhance these properties, wheat straw fiber was blended with bagasse fiber. The wheat straw and bagasse fibers were prepared with various weight ratios (80/20, 60/40, 40/60, and 20/80) and then incorporated into the epoxy matrix by molding technique to form composites. The mechanical, thermal, and water absorption characteristics were examined using blended composite samples. In this research, it has been observed that increases in the bagasse fiber content in wheat straw/epoxy composites result in superior the mechanical, thermal, and decreasing the moisture absorption property. A scanning electron microscope was used to observe the fracture surface of the samples. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.