Investigating the tensile and flexural strength of sunflower oil treated Ethiopian Highland bamboo fibre reinforced polyester composites

As bamboo composites have wide applications, this study investigated the mechanical properties (tensile and flexural) of oil-treated Ethiopian Highland bamboo fibre/polyester laminated composites using an experimental and analytical approach. The goal of oil treatment is to soften the components of bamboo fibre, resulting in more flexible fibre strands with high tensile and flexural strengths. The composite was manufactured using hand layup methods with a fibre/matrix ratio of 35%/ 65% by volume. The fibre orientations used in the laminates were [0]₅ for both tensile and bending tests. The maximum tensile and flexural stresses of oil-treated bamboo fibre-reinforced polyester composite (OBFP) were 193.3 MPa and 173.4 MPa, respectively. These outcomes surpassed untreated bamboo fibre-reinforced polyester composites by 39.6% and 50.2% (UBFP), respectively. The fibre tensile and flexural strains were increased by 25.1% and 25.7%, respectively, as a result of oil treatment. According to the findings, oil-treated bamboo fibre laminates exhibited better tensile and flexural characteristics. The oil treatment lubricated the fibre and increased strand flexibility to reduce abrupt breakage.