Influence of Water Ageing on Mechanical Properties of CaCO3 Filler Filled Epoxy Resin and Sansevieria/Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composites

Abstract

The present paper studies water absorption behavior and its consequence on mechanical properties of untreated and chemically treated Sansevieria /carbon fiber reinforced hybrid epoxy (Sria/CF-Ep) composite with calcium carbonate (CaCO3) nanoparticles. Sansevieria /carbon fiber (30/5 wt%) reinforced hybrid epoxy composite with 1.5, 3 and 4.5 wt% of CaCO3 have been developed by hand lay-up method followed by heat press. The water absorption characteristics of the Sria fibers were obtained by immersing the composite samples in sea water at room temperature, until reaching their water content saturation level. The dry and water-immersed hybrid composite samples were subjected to hardness, interlaminar shear, tensile, flexural, and impact tests. The water absorption development of hybrid composites was found to follow Fickian diffusion behavior. Diffusion coefficients and maximum water uptake results were evaluated; the outcome showed that both increased with an increase in filler loading to study the consequence of water penetration in the fiber/matrix interface. The study shows that the mechanical and water-resistant properties of the Sria were improved through chemical treatment and hybridization. Nevertheless, as a result of water penetrating the fiber/matrix interface, longer water-immersion times reduced the tensile and flexural strength of the composites.