Effect of wheat husk biogenic ceramic Si3N4 addition on mechanical, wear and flammability behaviour of castor sheath fibre-reinforced epoxy composite

Abstract

This study investigates the effects of incorporating biogenic ceramic Si3N4 particles derived from wheat husk into castor sheath fiber-reinforced epoxy composites. The primary objective of this work is to determine the extent to which the reinforcing of stem fibers and the incorporation of biomass-extracted ceramic particles enhance the mechanical strength, wear resistance, and flame resistance of the composite material. The biogenic ceramic Si3N4 particles were produced by a thermochemical method and then subjected to surface treatment using silane. Subsequently, the treated particles are integrated into the composite material through the utilization of a hand layup technique. The results showed that adding 40 vol% castor stem sheath fiber and 2 vol% biogenic ceramic Si3N4 particles had a significant positive impact on the mechanical properties. Among the samples, ECS2 had the highest values for tensile strength (142 MPa), tensile modulus (5.05 GPA), flexural strength (175 MPa), flexural modulus (6.11 GPA), and Izod impact strength (5.24 kJ/m2), except for hardness. Incorporating biogenic ceramic Si3N4 particles into the ECS3 composite enhanced its wear resistance. The current wear rate of the object is 0.008 mm2/Nm, and its coefficient of friction (COF) is 0.31. The ECS3 exhibited the highest combustion rate of 6.54 mm/min in the flammability test. The utilization of biogenic ceramic Si3N4 particles derived from husks and the production of castor sheath fiber had significant impacts on the strength, wear resistance, and flammability of the composites, in comparison to those generated using leaf and fruit fibers. The findings emphasize the potential of biogenic ceramic Si3N4 particles -enhanced composites in several applications, including door panels in autos, defense armor manufacture, and interior panels for residential use.