Effect of fiber orientation on the mechanical properties of unidirectional basalt fiber reinforced polymer matrix composites

Abstract

Polymer matrix composite materials have attracted the researchers over a period due to its superior specific strength, compared to conventional materials. Bio-based fibers have started to emerge rapidly for industrial components, encompassing the technological/scientific aspects and the economic, environmental and social issues. Amongst the variety of bio-based fibers, basalt fiber occupies a prominent position, due to its overall production and unique chemistry-related features. It is chemically inert and non-reactive. In the present investigation, unidirectional basalt fiber of 240GSM at different orientations is added as reinforcement with a fixed weight percentage of 55% to LY556-HY951 epoxy-hardener combination as matrix. Fabrication is carried out by conventional hand lay-up technique. Mechanical characterization such as, tensile, flexural, hardness and inter laminar shear strength tests are conducted for the fabricated material. Morphological studies are conducted using scanning electron microscope (SEM) to visualize the fiber pull out, presence of voids and matrix-fiber adhesion characteristics. From the results obtained, it can be concluded that the highest strengths are obtained for laminates with zero-degree fiber orientation, which makes it suitable to be used for engineering, structural and biomedical applications