Fabrication and Characterization of Jute/Human Hair Reinforced Polyester Hybrid Composite

Abstract

Fibre reinforced composites are used in automotive, defence and structural applications because of their economic and ecological advantage but they have limitation of lower mechanical strength. To balance this limitation of mechanical properties, hybrid composites are being manufactured. In this paper jute and human hair was selected for preparation of jute / human hair reinforced polyester hybrid composite. Human hair was selected because it is non-biodegradable and has high tensile strength. A single human hair can bear 1.5 Newton load. Recently various researcher started work towards development of bio-composites. It has been found that a mechanical property increases after adding hair in hybrid composites. Mechanical properties such as tensile strength, young modulus, and flexural strength were also compared with the already published jute composite results. To understand the fracture behaviour of composite morphology of the fractured surface was done by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The composite application is in environmental conditions addition and thus it is subjected to moisture presence, therefore study of water absorption behaviour of fabricated composite was also studied.