Speaker
Mr
Davidson LÜTKENHAUS
(Fiat Research Center, Fiat Group, Italy; and Department of Chemistry, University of Turin, Italy.)
Description
Polymer composites have been the dominant emerging materials over the past decades. The huge amount of composites applications have steadily enlarged and accordingly they are conquering new markets. Natural-fiber-reinforced composites are within a class of biocomposites that is arising as a viable alternative to the regular glass-fiber-reinforced composites, especially for automotive applications. Vegetable-fiber-based composites present interesting features such as low cost, low density which is crucial for light-weighting technologies and competitive mechanical behavior. Among many natural fibers, sisal is becoming a great filler for composites reinforcement. The goals of the present study are: to investigate the properties of a polypropylene biocomposite reinforced with 20% of sisal fibers, compare its characteristics with current glass-fiber-reinforced composites, and identify promising industrial applications. The material is being tested in terms of mechanical and thermal performances. The first results of flexural tests show that the sisal-based biocomposite presents higher ultimate tensile strength than the standard composites and comparable flexural modulus. The tensile testing revealed that the biocomposite supports a maximum load higher than the reference materials but its elongation percentage is lower resulting in a brittle behavior. Other important experimental analysis being employed at the moment are: heat deflection temperature, vicat softening point, izod impact strength, fogging and ageing tests. The properties obtained so far show a great usage probability to fabricate vehicle interior components due to its comparable profile to the materials being applied currently.
Primary author
Mr
Davidson LÜTKENHAUS
(Fiat Research Center, Fiat Group, Italy; and Department of Chemistry, University of Turin, Italy.)
Co-authors
Prof.
Oscar CHIANTORE
(Department of Chemistry, University of Turin, Italy.)
Dr
Valentina GRASSO
(Fiat Research Center, Fiat Group, Italy.)
