Extraction of reinforced epoxy nanocomposite using agricultural waste biomass

The growing awareness and concern of having greener and biodegradable materials has promoted researchers over the world to focus their attention on studies related to natural fibre reinforced polymer composites. In this study, the mechanical and thermal properties of the coconut shell powder and lignin obtained from different extraction methods such as Alkaline and Organosolv, on the epoxy composites were studied. The composite was fabricated using hand lay-up method, where the coconut shell and lignin fibers of 1, 2, 3 and 4 wt.% were mixed with the matrix consisting of epoxy resin and hardener in the ratio of 10:3. The obtained result showed that the usage of coconut shell powder and lignin as reinforcing fillers enhances the tensile strength and Young's modulus of composite when compared to neat epoxy composite by 16.4%, 14.6%, 9.70%, and 31.4%, 25.3%, 17.2% respectively at filler content of 3 wt. % but reduced the elongation at break up to 49.9% with respect to higher content of filler. Similarly, the flexural strength and Young's modulus was enhanced by 13.5%, 10.0%, 6.57% and 49.6%, 39.1%, 19.6% respectively at filler content of 3 wt.% but reduced the elongation at fracture up to 19.0% with respect to higher filler content. Structural characterization was also carried out where fillers were proven to enhance the purity and strength of the lignin.