Investigation of Physical and Mechanical Behavior of Hybrid Date Palm-Glass Fiber-Reinforced BMC Composites for Sustainable Green Construction Applications

This study investigates the physical, mechanical, and thermal conductivity properties of hybrid bulk molding compound (BMC) composites, aimed at sustainable green construction applications. Composites were fabricated using compression molding, incorporating different weight ratios of DPF and glass fibers to form natural, hybrid, and synthetic composites. The hybrid composite, comprising 20% total fiber content with a DPF-to-GF ratio of 1:1, demonstrated superior multifunctional performance. It exhibited a moderate density of 1.753 g/cm³ and reduced porosity of 2.18%, compared to the DPF composite. Water absorption was significantly decreased to 4.85%, indicating improved environmental durability. Mechanically, the hybrid composite achieved a flexural strength of 59.52 MPa and a tensile strength of 13.79 MPa, demonstrating substantial improvement over the DPF composite. Additionally, post-immersion tests revealed only moderate reductions in flexural (26.3%) and tensile (43.22%) strengths, highlighting the hybrid's resilience under humid conditions. Thermal analysis showed that the hybrid composite exhibited the lowest thermal conductivity (0.2142 W/mK), outperforming both single-fiber composites. These findings confirm that DPF/GF hybrid BMC composites offer a promising, sustainable alternative for structural and thermal insulation applications, particularly in moderate-temperature industrial settings.

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