GLASS-FIBRE REINFORCED COMPOSITES: THE EFFECT OF FIBRE LOADING AND ORIENTATION ON TENSILE AND IMPACT STRENGTH

The primary objective of this research work is to analyse the effect of fibre loading and orientation on the tensile and impact strength of the polymeric composite materials. Fibre reinforced composite materials have been reported to have attracted many applications in view of its low weight and superior strength when compared with the metal matrix composite. While researches have established the weight reduction of fibre reinforced polymer material, few works have reported the impact of orientation on the manufacturing of polymer composite. In this study, series of experimental works were done to demonstrate the manufacturing of glass-fibre reinforced epoxy resin with special attention on the influence of oriented reinforced composite material. The composites were manufactured using hand-lay technique with three different fibre loadings (10, 20, and 30 wt. %) and at two different fibre orientations (30o and 60o). Key of the finding drawn from this research form the basis of discussion and, composite with 60o fibre orientation showed better tensile strength when compared with the neat resin and other oriented (G10E30) fibre reinforced composite. Similar observations were also noticed on the impact strength of these composites which signify the improved mechanical properties of oriented reinforced composite materials. http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/njt.v36i3.1