Semarak International Journal of Material Research

Mechanical Properties of Jute Fiber Polyester Hybrid Composite Reinforced with Rice Husk

Muhammad Danial Haikal Mohd Razali — 2024-12-30

In order to protect the environment by using biodegradable materials, natural fibers have become more frequently used in composites. Due to their high specific strength and modulus, fiber reinforced polymer-based hybrid composites have been employed in numerous industrial applications for a very long time. Since there are numerous natural fibers accessible, it was decided to investigate using jute, a natural fiber with polyester resin reinforced with rice husk. The strength and lightness of natural fibers are matched by their affordability. Therefore, the objective of the present study is to investigate the mechanical properties of jute fiber polyester resin hybrid composite reinforced with rice husk. This project will be carried out by the fabrication of the materials using the hand lay-up technique into five different ratio which are 20:80, 40:60, 50:50, 60:40 and 80:20. Then, the cutting of fabricated materials by using CNC router machine according to the ASTM standards. After completely done the cutting process, it will test through tensile, flexural, and impact tests to determine the mechanical properties of the samples. The collected data were analyzed using statistical analysis. Based on the tensile, flexural, impact and water absorption test of jute fiber polyester resin hybrid composite reinforced with rice husk according to the testing standard ASTM D3039, ASTM D790, ASTM D6110 and ASTM D570 respectively. Then, a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to analyze the tensile strength and elasticity, flexural load of maximum force and maximum stress, impact strength and water absorption of the jute fiber polyester resin hybrid composite reinforced with rice husk.

Mechanical and Structural Properties of Enhanced Based on Carboxymethyl Cellulose Doped Ammonium Chloride Solid Biopolymer Electrolytes

Farah Shaikirin Shamei Shuhaimi — 2024-12-30

Solid Biopolymer Electrolytes (SBEs) systems based on carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) doped ammonium chloride (AC) and varied amounts 4-20wt% of ethylene carbonate (EC) as a plasticizer were prepared via the solution casting technique. The electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) method was used to analyse the ionic conductivity of SBEs by room temperature (303K). The sample with 8wt% of EC exhibits the highest ionic conductivity at 4.43 × 10−6 Sm-1. In this study, mechanical, physical and structural of CMC-AC-EC were tested. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) demonstrated the composite nature and indicated the SBEs components formed a complex with each other, and this complexation was successfully confirmed by Gaussian software. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed that the amorphous peak of CMC become broaden with addition of EC and the crystallinity of AC showed a peak. The UV-Vis spectroscopy tests the transparency value with transmittance at 600nm. The tensile strength (TS) and elongation at break (EAB) can be obtained from the stress-strain graph using the Universal Testing Machine. The morphological behaviour of electrolytes has been analysed by using Field Emission Scanning Electrolytes Spectroscopy (FESEM) to observe changes in CMC based on the solid biopolymer electrolytes when AC and EC are added to the system.

Vibration Analysis of the Distributed Optical Vibration Sensor (DOVS) on Various Surrounding Materials and Water Content

S.N.F Mohd Asseri — 2024-12-30

Distributed optical vibration sensing (DOVS) is an optical sensing method that monitors acoustic turbulence in optical fibres, and then demodulating and processing the optical signal to correlate it to an external parameter. Optical based DOVS sensors have a few key advantages, including large-scale monitoring, good concealment, good flexibility and anti-electromagnetic interference which makes them useful for a wide range of applications. In this work, a distributed vibration sensing (DVS) is demonstrated using a 1550 nm erbium-doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) as a broadband emission source and a single-mode fiber (SMF) as the sensing mechanism. An Arduino piezoelectric transducer (PZT) vibrator is used as the vibration source in the experiments, while sand, soil, and cement with different water compositions are used as the test media. The different water content has varying refractive indices and elasticities. The vibration analysis is measured through the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) where the frequency drift, intensity, and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is observed. Results of the testing show a similar sensitivity of intensity for different materials and water content which is 0.016dB/mL. Meanwhile, the highest frequency drift is observed for sand with varied water content which is 0.617Hz/mL. Similarly, the highest SNR of 23.5dB was also obtained for soil with a water content of 250 mL, while the lowest SNR was that of cement with the same water content at 15.1dB. This indicates that the DOVS system is capable of picking up even minor vibrations in cement, soil and sand, and would thus have significant applications in structural monitoring.

Structural and Mechanical Properties of Zinc-Strontium-Lithium Phosphate Glass Doped with Carboxymethyl Cellulose

Siti Norfariza Farhana Mohd Razak — 2024-12-30

A series of phosphate glasses doped with carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) was synthesized using the melt-quenching technique to explore their structural and mechanical properties. The composition (40–x) P₂O₅-ZnO-Li₂O–SrO-xCH₂CO₂H (0.0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5 mol%) was characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, ultrasonic testing, and Vickers hardness measurements. Results revealed that the addition of CMC caused subtle structural changes, enhancing the glass network's compactness and stiffness. Mechanical analysis showed improved hardness, elasticity, and self-cleaning properties, making this system a viable candidate for applications in food processing and healthcare, where surface contamination is a concern. This study highlights the potential of biodegradable, non-toxic phosphate glass for innovative and sustainable applications.

Enhancing Zirconia-Toughened Alumina with Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) and Empty Fruit Bunch-Derived Solid Carbon

Nursamirah Roshidan — 2024-12-30

Zirconia-toughened alumina (ZTA) is a widely utilized oxide ceramic known for its exceptional toughness, wear resistance, and corrosion resistance, making it suitable for applications such as cutting tools and biomedical devices. Despite its advantages, the burnout of binders like polyethylene glycol (PEG) at high temperatures leaves porous structures in ZTA composites, potentially hindering densification and material performance. This study aims to enhance ZTA composite properties by using PEG to create pores that facilitate carbon (C) infiltration through the chemical vapor infiltration process, utilizing biomass-derived carbon from empty fruit bunches (EFB). The ZTA composites were impregnated with different amounts of PEG, ranging from 0 to 5 wt%, to increase the porosity of their microstructures, as the composites had to be porous to facilitate efficient C deposition, and achieve optimal strength. Empty fruit bunches (EFBs) were used as the C source. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results revealed that the PEG formed pores on the surface of the ZTA composites, possibly, because the higher PEG concentration decreased the density of the ZTA composites. However, the density of the ZTA composites increased post C infiltration as the C filled the pore spaces. The C-infiltrated ZTA composite containing 3 wt.% of PEG had the highest density (4.145 g/cm³) as well as the highest hardness (1911 HV) and fracture toughness (6.98 MPa.m^1/2). It also required the lowest Raman spectra intensity ratio (I_D/I_G, 1.26), which indicated that it contained a high percentage of sp2 hybridised C atoms and a higher degree of graphitising C. Our findings had proved that during the sintering process, the binder evaporated, leaving pores that were later filled with C. This improved fracture resistance, hardness, and density because fewer pores remained, and porosity was reduced. However, as the PEG content increased to 4 wt.%, mechanical properties declined. This was due to agglomeration, which created more pores in the microstructure, making it easier for cracks to spread.