Alkali Process Coir Natural Fiber Incorporated Epoxy Composite Made by Compression Mold Route: Characteristics Evaluation

They are becoming a trend for natural fiber-made polymer composites, widespread in households, aero, automobiles, construction, etc. But the drawback is moisture absorption. Alkali chemical solution with 10% concentration is used to treat the coir natural fiber and adopted by 0, 5, 10, and 15 volume percentages to the epoxy matrix for synthesizing the composites using compression technique with an applied pressure of 100 MPa. The moisture absorption percentage, flexural strength, and fracture toughness of epoxy matrix and coir-reinforced epoxy composite are evaluated. Their results are compared to identify the best optimum composites for low-specific-weight applications. The 15 vol% of coir natural fiber (alkali treat) blended with epoxy provided a 12 ± 0.3% reduced water absorption percentage, 62 ± 2 MPa of improved flexural behavior, and a better feature toughness value of 1.49 ± 0.01 MPa m^0.5.