Investigating The Mechanical Properties Of Reinforced Coconut Shell Powder/Epoxy Resin Composites

Abstract

Experimental investigations were conducted to determine the mechanical properties of coconut shell powder filled epoxy resin composites. The results obtained showed that the modulus of elasticity and hardness of the composite increased with increasing percentage weight of both the 150 μm and 212 μm CSP particle sizes. The tensile strength, percent elongation and impact toughness of the composite were all seen to decrease as the reinforcement increased. The investigations carried out showed that the addition of coconut shell powder to epoxy resin only raised the values of the specific mechanical properties of tensile stiffness and hardness. Different models were used to predict the mechanical properties of the CSP composites. The method of Nicolais-Narkis predicted values of tensile strength that depicted a decreasing trend with increasing weight fraction of the reinforcing filler, in a manner similar to that of the experimental results obtained here. Nielsen’s equation gave rise to predicted values of percentage elongation that were much less than the experimental results obtained in the present work. Einstein’s and Voigt equations predicted values of tensile stiffness that were higher than the experimental values obtained here, whilst the Reuss equation predicted values that were lower than these experimental values. The model of Guth and separately Smallwood predicted values that were closest to the experimental values obtained here.