Polymer composites reinforced with short fibers obtained from poultry feathers

Short fibers obtained form poultry feathers are found to possess high toughness, good thermal insulation properties, non abrasive behavior and hydrophobic nature. Their low cost, low density and large aspect ratio can make them good reinforcing materials in polymer matrix composites. This paper reports the development of poultry feather reinforced epoxy composites. Randomly oriented short feather fibers are reinforced into epoxy resin to prepare composite slabs. Mechanical properties such as tensile strength, flexural strength, micro-hardness etc. are evaluated. Solid particle erosion tests are conducted on the composite samples to evaluate their wear resistance. A self developed air-jet type erosion test rig and dry silica sand particles are used for this purpose. It is found that the material loss from the composite surface depends greatly on operational variables like impact angle, impact velocity etc. Taguchi experimental design technique is used in this study to determine the relative significance of various control factors influencing the wear rate. The erosion response of the composite is compared with that of neat epoxy and the effect of fiber reinforcement on the wear rate is discussed