Polyethylene Composite Is Fabricated with Nano-SiC and Short Basalt via an Advanced Injection Mold Route: Performance Measures

The hybrid polymer-based composite are the attention of auto and aerospace applications. It is considered a prime matrix for hybrid composite fabrication because of light weight, good strength, and improved toughness property reasons. The research aims to enrich the polyethylene matrix properties by incorporating 12 wt% of basalt fiber and different weight percentages (wt%) of silicon carbide nanoparticles via advanced injection molding. The impact of the injection molding process and combination of SiC and short basalt fiber on composite yield, tensile strength, and impact toughness is studied. The compositions of polyethylene matrix with constant wt% of short basalt fiber and nano-SiC showed better enhancement in mechanical properties such as yield, tensile, and impact toughness. While related to mono polyethylene matrix, 5 wt%, the nano-SiC configured polyethylene matrix with 12 wt% basalt fiber composite obtained a maximum yield strength of 9.4 ± 0.2 MPa, tensile property of 12.3 ± 0.4 MPa, and impact toughness of 35 ± 1 J/cm2. This composite is utilized for high strength-to-weight ratio applications.