Mechanical, Physical, Morphology and Properties of Multi-Functional Natural Fiber and Nano SiO 2 Reinforced Epoxy Hybrid Composite

Natural fibers are being used to balance the environment. Comparatively low costs as well as low energy consumption add to their benefits. The emphasis is on enhancing the properties of the composite with the use of nano-filler materials with natural fiber. The purpose of this work is to develop a high-quality hybrid composite by mixing nano silica with natural bamboo fiber. The composite was made by hand–layup technique. The epoxy, hardener, bi-directional bamboo mat and nano SiO₂ have been used as the filler material. After making the Hybrid Composite (HC) we gave it nine different names because we have taken bamboo layer with nano silica in 3 different patterns. Nano SiO2Filler Material (NSFM) with three different wt. % were used. NSFM is used with 0,2 and 4 wt. %. The name of composite is HC1, HC2, HC3, HC4, HC5, HC6, HC7, HC8 and HC9. The various tests like tensile test, flexural test, hardness test and impact test of all nine-hybrid composites were conducted. Based on the obtained mechanical properties Water Absorption (WA), Thickness Swelling Test (TST) was also conducted as per ASTM standard. Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and Heat Deflection Temperature (HDT) test of six composites (HC4, HC5, HC6, HC7, HC8 and HC9) were performed. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and FESEM of nano silica particle was also performed. During the water absorption test, we found that HC4 sample has shown the least water absorption and the HC9 shown the highest value. From the HDT test, it was found that the HC9 has better heat resistance properties than other composite samples. The amorphous peak located at 20.8^° (2θ) in the XRD pattern. The primary nano silica particle was 20-40 nm in size and they aggregated/cluster in bigger particle. The FESEM image we can see that for HC9 silica nano particle forms clusters. In the natural composite mixture, as the use of filler material increased, the properties shown an increase upto certain limit followed by the decrease in properties with further increase of the filler material. The addition of nano particles beyond 3 wt.% has shown reduction in tensile strength, flexural strength, impact strength and hardness strength properties at 4 wt. % silica (SiO₂).