SISAL

About: SISAL is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1878 publications have been published within this topic receiving 55528 citations.

Effects of organic peroxide and polymer chain structure on morphology and thermal properties of sisal fibre reinforced polyethylene composites

Abstract: The effect of polymer chain structure, addition of dicumyl peroxide (DCP) to initiate grafting onto the fibre, and different fibre loadings on the morphology and thermal properties of polyethylene/sisal fibre composites was investigated. The gel content results suggest both crosslinking between the polyethylene chains and grafting onto the sisal fibres. There were significant differences in gel contents between the composites because of the differences in the polyethylene molecular structures. The SEM micrographs of the samples show clear evidence of grafting, particularly in the case of the LDPE and LLDPE composites. The presence of the sisal fibres gave rise to thermally less stable composites compared to the neat matrices, whereas marginal differences in stability were observed between the untreated and peroxide treated composites. The DSC results show interesting trends in terms of the influence of fibre content and dicumyl peroxide treatment on the crystallisation behaviour of the composites.

Mechanical properties of short sisal fiber-reinforced polypropylene composites: Comparison of experimental data with theoretical predictions

Abstract: Sisal fibers were used for the reinforcement of a polypropylene (pp) matrix. Composites consisting of polypropylene reinforced with short sisal fibers were prepared by melt-mixing and solution-mixing methods. A large amount of fiber breakage was observed during melt mixing. The fiber breakage analysis during composite preparation by melt mixing was carried out using optical microscopy. A polynomial equation was used to model the fiber-length distribution during melt mixing. The experimental mechanical properties of sisal/PP composites were compared with existing theoretical models such as the modified rule of mixtures, parallel and series models, the Hirsch model, and the Bowyer–Baders model. The dependence of the tensile strength on the angle of measurement with respect to fiber orientation also was modeled. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 88: 602–611, 2003

Mechanical and Thermal Characterization of Natural Intralaminar Hybrid Composites Based on Sisal.

Abstract: The main objective of this work was to investigate the effect of hybridization on the mechanical and thermal properties of intralaminar natural fiber-reinforced hybrid composites based on sisal. Ramie, sisal and curaua fibers were selected as natural fiber reinforcements for the epoxy matrix based composites, which were produced by the hand lay-up technique. Tensile, flexural and impact tests were carried out according to American society for testing and materials (ASTM) standards to characterize the hybrid composites, while differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were used to evaluate the thermal properties. It was found that the mechanical properties are improved by hybridization of sisal based composites. The thermal analysis showed that the hybridization did not significantly affect the thermal stability of the composites. A scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to examine the fracture surface of the tested specimens. The SEM images showed a brittle fracture of the matrix and fiber breakage near the matrix.