Tensile and Flexural Characteristics of Palm/Glass Sandwiched Polymer Composite

Abstract

The environment friendly natural fibers used in this study are taken from leaf stalk portion of palm tree. Portions of these fibers are alkali treated while the remaining kept raw. Both these fibers are sandwiched separately with glass fibers to form two set of plates by reinforcing into polyester resin matrix blend with coconut shell powder using hand lay-up method. Specimens are tested as per ASTM standards. The results reveal that alkali treatment improved fiber quality and a novel composite was developed for producing automobile parts