Influence of Hybridizing Flax and Hemp-Agave Fibers with Glass Fiber as Reinforcement in a Polyurethane Composite

Pankaj Pandey; Dilpreet Bajwa; Chad Ulven; Sreekala Bajwa

doi:10.3390/ma9050390

Influence of Hybridizing Flax and Hemp-Agave Fibers with Glass Fiber as Reinforcement in a Polyurethane Composite

Materials (Basel). 2016 May 19;9(5):390. doi: 10.3390/ma9050390.

Authors

Pankaj Pandey¹, Dilpreet Bajwa², Chad Ulven³, Sreekala Bajwa⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58102, USA. pankaj.pandey@ndsu.edu.
² Department of Mechanical Engineering, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58102, USA. dilpreet.bajwa@ndsu.edu.
³ Department of Mechanical Engineering, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58102, USA. chad.ulven@ndsu.edu.
⁴ Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58102, USA. sreekala.bajwa@ndsu.edu.

Abstract

In this study, six combinations of flax, hemp, and glass fiber were investigated for a hybrid reinforcement system in a polyurethane (PU) composite. The natural fibers were combined with glass fibers in a PU composite in order to achieve a better mechanical reinforcement in the composite material. The effect of fiber hybridization in PU composites was evaluated through physical and mechanical properties such as water absorption (WA), specific gravity (SG), coefficient of linear thermal expansion (CLTE), flexural and compression properties, and hardness. The mechanical properties of hybridized samples showed mixed trends compared to the unhybridized samples, but hybridization with glass fiber reduced water absorption by 37% and 43% for flax and hemp-agave PU composites respectively.

Keywords: flax; glass; hemp-agave; hybridization; natural fiber composites; polyurethane.