Composites Based on Sustainable Biomass Fiber for Automotive Brake Pads

Abstract

Biomass fibers are promising materials for applications in modern vehicles. They have great economic and ecological significance, as well as a great potential in the fabrication of composite materials due to the relatively high level of strength and rigidity, low density, availability, recyclability, and biodegradability. In this context, the focus is on the development of automotive brake pad materials from sustainable sources. This work refers to the investigation of the behavior of composite materials made of biomass fibers, phenolic resin, graphite and aluminum oxide. These materials are intended to be used for brake pads on automobiles with moderate efficiency. For this purpose, three recipes of composite materials with different percentages of coconut fiber and wood powder were developed in laboratory. The physical and mechanical as well as functional properties of these composite materials with varying amounts of biomass fibers are examined in this paper. The best performances in this terms was obtained for the composite material containing the highest amount of wood powder and the lowest amount of coconut fiber.