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Experimental Investigation on Coconut Coir Reinforced Composite Polymer

Article · November 2016

DOI: 10.14445/22315381/IJETT-V41P224

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 International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume-41 Number-3 - November 2016
Experimental Investigation on Coconut Coir
Reinforced Composite Polymer
Prassanna Kattimani1, Nagaraj Raikar2, Amol Nayakappa Patil3 , Parashuram Nandi4
1,2,3,4
Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Agnel Institute of Technology and Design,
Assagao-Goa, India
Abstract - Although synthetic fibers have a lot of
advantages but we can owe its declining use in
recent years to its high initial cost, non-
biodegradability, non-renewability, high energy
consumption in manufacturing process and adverse
environmental impacts. Natural fibers however more
than compensate for their poor compatibility with
the matrix, inherent high moisture absorption rate
with their positive attributes like low cost, low
density, non abrasivity, good thermal properties,
and enhanced energy recovery and bio
degradability. Coir is an important lignocellulose
fiber used for making variety of floor furnishing
materials, yarn, rope etc. but they contribute to a
very small percentage production of coir. So
researchers are trying to find new areas for
utilization of coir as in reinforcement polymer
composite. In this experiment coconut coir fiber is
the natural fiber component chemically treated with
alkaline solution. Here chemically treated and
untreated fibers are mixed separately with polyester,
vinyl ester & epoxy resins, and by using hand lay-up
technique these reinforced composite material is
moulded in to box shape. Nine specimens will be
prepared in different volume percentage of coir
fibers and by using three different resins (polyester,
epoxy and vinyl ester) in order to get more accurate
results.
Keywords - Natural fiber, Coconut Coir, Composite
Polymer, Orthogonal Array, Design of Experiments,
Factorial Design, ANOVA, Mechanical properties.
I. INTRODUCTION
Composite material application is tremendously
increased over years, composite materials along with
plastic and ceramics are capturing industrial and
domestic consumer market. Composite material
have significant proportion over other in engineering
material market ranging from day to day products to
the sophisticated niche application. Composite low
weight is major advantage that made them to capture
market, but challenge is to make composites
available at low cost. Demand of economically
attractive composite is ever increasing and resulted
in several innovative manufacturing techniques, but
manufacturing alone is not enough to overcome the
cost hurdles. It is very essential to go concurrent so
efforts are diversified towards design, material,
ISSN: 2231-5381 http://www.ijettjournal.org
process, tooling, quality and program management
to give cost effective edge.
Aerospace sector has larger application of composite
due to low weight advantage, but there is paradigm
shift in application composite find vast applications
in other commercial uses. Application includes
composite armoring designed to resist explosive
impacts, fuel cylinders for natural gas vehicles,
windmill blades, industrial drive shafts, support
beams of highway bridges and even paper making
rollers. Application resulted in emphasizes on
properties like on properties like chemical
resistance, corrosion resistance, shock, vibration
absorptions, thermal resistance, distortion. Wider
composite application resulted in newer polymers,
with modified resin matrix material and high
performance glass fibers like carbon and aramid, and
also introduction of natural fibers. Selection of
composite depends on engineering requirement and
composite formation depends on factors like life
span of application, shape complexity, cost
constraint, manufacturing skill and potential of
composites. In some instances, best results may be
achieved through the use of composites in
conjunction with traditional materials. Epoxy resin,
most important matrix in composite polymer for
high performance and fibers like bamboo, coir, jute,
flux gives advantage over low weight and too
Natural fibers are biodegradable, but have lower
strength, lower modulus and poor resistance when
compared with composite reinforced with synthetic
fiber like glass, carbon, aramid [1]. To overcome
these limitations studies are carried out on different
natural fibers in variety of compositions.
Study carried out on hybrid natural fiber sisal and
glass fiber with epoxy composite on frictional
coefficient, impact, hardness and chemical resistance
as function of fiber length and concluded optimum
mechanical properties at 2cm fiber length [2].
Bamboo and glass fiber with epoxy resin composite
study on frictional, impact, Dielectric strength,
chemical properties was carried out [3]. Research
concluded chemically treated fibers have more
tensile strength when compared to untreated coconut
coir fibers. When the fibers tested in water at
different time periods there is a slight change in their
tensile properties. The composites having volume of
5% coir fiber showed notable results when compared
to high fiber loading composites due to the effect of
material stiffness [4]. Studies shows coconut coir
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 International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume-41 Number-3 - November 2016

composite with varying fiber length have greater as the accelerator, Di Methyl Aniline 1.5% which is
influence on hardness, tensile strength, flexural promoter, and Methyl Ethyl Ketone Peroxide 1.5%
strength, impact strength etc. The fracture surfaces as catalyst and pressed with load and allowed to cure
study of coir fiber reinforced epoxy composite after for 2Hrs, So to achieve uniform thickness.
the tensile test, flexural test and impact test has been
done. From this study it has been concluded that the III. INVESTIGATION STUDY
poor interfacial bonding is responsible for low The current proposed work relates to the preparation
mechanical properties [5]. NaOH treatment on coir of bio-composites with coconut coir fiber as a
fiber would remove the impurity and rougher fiber reinforcement and polyester, vinyl ester and epoxy
surface may result after treatment. This would resin as a matrix material aiming at investigating the
increase the adhesive ability of the coir fiber with mechanical properties by varying the parameters
the matrix in the fabricated composite resulting in such as fiber length, % NaOH, % filler weight and
good tensile strength. The NaOH treated fibers have types of resins using Taguchi’s factorial design.
better reinforcing property and tensile strength than Later properties comparison with wood. Table 1
un-treated fibers. It is observed that by increasing define three levels of fiber length, Resin type, filler
the length of fibers the tensile strength of the weight % and NaOH %
composite increases [6].
Tensile strength of the composites treated with 1% Table 1. Factor Levels
NaOH solution display better strength as compared
to that by 2% NaOH solution. This is because 1%
Parameters\factors I II III
NaOH improves the surface just the optimum
amount by removing lignin, pectin etc. such that Length of fiber (cm) 1 1.5 2
fiber strength is not compromised in comparison to
Resin type L1* L2* L3*
2% NaOH treated composite. It has also been
observed that with the increase in the treatment time Filler weight (%) 4 5 6
or the soaking time of the fibers, increases the tensile NaOH (%) 0 3 6
properties to a certain extent and beyond that further
increase in soaking time decreases the properties. L1* Polyester L2* Vinyl-ester L3* Epoxy
The flexural/bending strength values of the untreated
fiber are considerably lower than that of the treated Experiments were conducted using Taghuchi’s L9
fiber[7]. orthogonal array as mention in Table 2
The material properties (young’s modulus, poison’s
ratio, percentage gain of water, wear and hardness) Table 2. L9 Orthogonal Array
of fabricated natural fiber reinforced composites
were observed and it is was found that polymer Coir Filler
reinforced natural composites is the best natural Specimen Resin NaOH
composites for manufacturing of automotive seat length Weight
No. Type (%)
shells among the other natural fiber combination of (cm) (%)
coir and jute [8].
Work was carried out with aim to explore the 1 1 1 1 1
potential of the coir fiber polymer composites and to 2 1 1 2 2
study the mechanical properties of composites. Coir
3 1 1 3 3
fiber composite has vide application as packaging,
furniture and hence mechanical property study was 4 2 2 2 1
carried out [9]. 5 2 2 3 2
II. SPECIMEN PREPARATION 6 2 2 1 3
Specimens were prepared by using coconut coir 7 3 3 3 1
by hand lay-up technique in a wooden box of 8 3 3 1 2
dimension 280x280x10 mm at room temperature. 9 3 3 2 3
First the coconut coir were washed with water to
remove the sand and other impurities, and then the
For tensile test specimen was placed between the
coir is treated with NaOH solution followed by two holders of the machine. The constant rate of
washing with distilled water. Subsequently, the loading of 100 mm/min is applied on the
coconut coir were dried at room temperature, By specimen.The specimen of 50mm gauge length,
using different techniques, the required coir size is 29mm wide and 10mm thickness is used. The
maintained as per the experimental requirement. The
specimen is fixed in the tensile testing machine jaws
prepared coconut coir is thoroughly spread with the
and initial adjustments are made. The experiments
matrix material to which curing additives are added are conducted on the specimen. The values of load
in the proportion of Cobalt Octane 1.5% which acts and corresponding deflection are noted down. The

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 International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume-41 Number-3 - November 2016

results are obtained from the UTM machine Figure 1: Specimen dimensions according to the
connected to a computer. ASTM D638-10 standard
According to ASTM D638-10,the dimensions of the
tensile test specimen are shown in Figure 1. The
composite specimen required for this respective test
was prepared as shown in figure 2.

Figure 2: Specimen of composites according to

the ASTM D638-10 standard

Tensile strength result on listed specimen prepared

using Taghuchi’s defined orthogonal array are listed
in Table 3.
Table 3. L9 Orthogonal Array – Tensile Strength

Coir length Filler Weight NaOH

ResinType Sample I Sample II
(cm) (%) (%)
1 1 1 1 13 13.5
1 2 2 2 12.958 13
1 3 3 3 3.022 3
2 1 2 3 8 8.61
2 2 3 1 2.035 2.31
2 3 1 2 6.166 6.211
3 1 3 2 8.998 9.11
3 2 1 3 8.869 9.314
3 3 2 1 27.88 27.61

Table 4. ANOVA – Tensile Strength

Factor SS DOF VS= (SS/DOF) FCal=(VS/VSE) FTab (α1=2,α2=17)

A 283.76 2 141.88 103.15 3.59

B 46.62 2 23.31 16.95 3.59
C 401.234 2 200.617 145.85 3.59
D 172.27 2 86.135 62.62 3.59
Error 12.38 9 1.3755 ----------- ------------
Total 916.28 17 ------ ------------ ------------

Bending test was conducted according to ASTM
D790-03, a three point bending arrangement has
been employed to carry out the flexural test. In this
system, a centre loading is utilised on a simply
supported beam. The schematic representation of 3-
point bending fixture is shown in Figure 3.
Figure 3: Schematic representation of 3-point
bending fixture
The span length between center lines of support
rollers has been marked. The specimen on the roller
supports at center have been placed. The load at the
center of the span is applied at very slow rate until
failure of the specimen. The simultaneous
observations of load ‘F’ and deflections ‘Y’ have
been observed.
According to ASTM D790-03, the
specimens were prepared for static bending. Each
test specimen of 13mm width, length 191mm and
thickness 10mm was used for the present
investigation. The span (centre to centre distance

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 International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume-41 Number-3 - November 2016

between roller supports) for each specimen is Figure 5: Specimen of composites according to the
150mm. The bending test specimen is shown in
ASTM D790-03 standard
Figure 1.4.
Flexural stress,
where, F – applied load force, in Newton.
L – Span, in millimeters.
b – Width, in millimeters of the specimen.
Figure 4: Specimen dimensions according to the h – Thickness, in millimeters, of the
specimen.
ASTM D790-03 standard
Results of bending strength on specimens along with
ANOVA to determine significant level are given in
Table 5 and Table 6

Table 5. L9 Orthogonal Array - Bending

Coir length Filler Weight NaOH
ResinType Sample I Sample II
(cm) (%) (%)
1 1 1 1 176 167
1 2 2 2 29.763 27.22
1 3 3 3 258.06 246.51
2 1 2 3 18.25 17.28
2 2 3 1 6.611 6.59
2 3 1 2 11.433 11.21
3 1 3 2 21.332 20.15
3 2 1 3 18.228 19.001
3 3 2 1 46.65 46.52

Table 6. ANOVA – Bending

Factor SS DOF VS= (SS/DOF) FCal=(VS/VSE) FTab (α1=2,α2=17)

A 68980.1 2 34475.05 1502.8 3.59

B 22268.51 2 11134.255 972.42 3.59
C 11742.3 2 5871.26 512.46 3.59
D 18472.3 2 9236.15 806.18 3.59
Error 160.4 9 22.914 ----------
Total 121223 17 ---------- ----------

The Brinell hardness test is commonly used to

determine the hardness of materials like metals and
alloys. The test is achieved by applying a known BHN =
load to the surface of the tested material through a
hardened steel ball of known diameter. The Brinell Where, F=Load
test characterizes the hardness of materials through D = Diameter of indenter
the scale of penetration of an indenter, loaded on a d = Diameter of indentation
material test-piece.
Results of hardness test on specimens along with
The diameter of the resulting permanent impression ANOVA to determine significant level are given in
in the tested metal is measured and the Brinell Table 7 and Table 8
Hardness Number (BHN) is calculated as

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 International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume-41 Number-3 - November 2016

Table 7. L9 Orthogonal Array - Hardness

Coir length Filler Weight NaOH
ResinType Sample I Sample II
(cm) (%) (%)
1 1 1 1 41.77 48.17
1 2 2 2 47.77 62.44
1 3 3 3 95.54 71.62
2 1 2 3 31.42 33.46
2 2 3 1 111.44 71.62
2 3 1 2 71.62 62.44
3 1 3 2 62.44 62.44
3 2 1 3 71.62 19.10
3 3 2 1 71.62 54.58

Table 8. ANOVA – Hardness

Factor SS DOF VS= (SS/DOF) FCal=(VS/VSE) FTab (α1=2,α2=17)

A 46.87 2 23.435 0.12 3.59

B 1916.25 2 958.25 4.94 3.59
C 3117.39 2 1558.695 8.44 3.59
D 505.04 2 252.52 1.3 3.59
Error 1744 9 193.77 ---------- ----------
Total 7330.01 17 ---------- ---------- ----------

IV. RESULT & DISCUSSION

In this work coconut coir composite is fabricated
using hand layup technique. Experiments were
conducted using taguchi’s L9 orthogonal array.
Length of fiber , Resin type, Filler weight and NaOH
percentage are considered as a variable factors to
study different mechanical properties viz. Tensile,
Bending and Hardness. Further statistical analysis
was done by fisher’s test for analysis of variance
(ANOVA). The result of the ANOVA for tensile,
bending and hardness are listed in table, 4, 6, 8
respectively. From Table 4. it was concluded that
length of fiber, Resin type, Filler weight and NaOH
percentage are significant factors contributing tensile Figure 6: Main effects plot for mean for Tensile
properties of the composite. From Table 6. indicates
bending properties of composite are greatly Level 1 of factor A, level 3of factor B, level 3 of
influenced by length of fiber, Resin type, Filler factor C and level 3 of factor D will give maximum
weight and NaOH percentage.. Resin type and Filler bending strength. Whereas level 2 of factor A, level
weight are contributing factors towards the hardness 3 of factor B, level 3 of factor C and level 1 of factor
of composite. D gives maximum hardness.
The composite material will have maximum tensile
strength at level 3 of factor A (Length of fiber), level
3 of factor B(Resin Type), Level 2 of factor C(Filler
weight %) and level 1 of factor D(NaOH %).

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 International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology (IJETT) – Volume-41 Number-3 - November 2016
Figure 7: Main effects plot for mean for Bending
Figure 8: Main effects plot for mean for Hardness
V. CONCLUSIONS
The coconut coir composite were prepared suing
different resin system viz polyester, vinyl ester and
epoxy, in order to characterized three mechanical
properties tensile, hardness and bending. The
experiments were planned using L9 orthogonal array
by changing level of NaOH, filler weight, resin type
and fiber length. The ANOVA was performed to
check the significance of factor level and following
conclusion was drawn
•It has been observed that increasing the filler
weight % increases the hardness and bending
strength of the polymer composites. Also, NaOH
treatment of filler increases the bending strength.
This is due to the increase in adhesion property of
particles. Increasing the coir fiber length, the tensile
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strength increases and on decreasing the coir fiber
length, the bending strength increases.
•It has been observed that specimen 9 (coir length
2cms, epoxy resin, 5% filler weight, 0% NaOH
treatment) has the highest tensile strength. Specimen
3 (coir length 1cm, epoxy resin, 6% filler weight,
6% NaOH treatment) has the highest bending
strength and Specimen 5 (coir length 1.5cms, vinyl
ester resin, 6% filler weight, 0% NaOH treatment)
has the highest hardness.
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