Experimental Comparison of the Effect of Fiber Orientation on Mechanical Properties of Natural Fiber Reinforced Composites (NFRCs)

The use of green plant fibers as a reinforcement in natural fiber-reinforced composites has been widely enhanced because of their intensified properties. This research work aims to investigate the effect of fiber ply orientation on the flexural and impact properties of sisal, bamboo, and hybrid fiber-reinforced composites. In this work, bamboo and sisal fibers were extracted, and both fibers underwent alkaline treatment to remove the content of lignin, hemicellulose, wax, and oils. 0°, 45°, and 90° are the fiber ply orientations. Mono and hybrid fiber-reinforced composites were fabricated using the Taguchi L9 Orthogonal array and hand layup technique. The experimental results of this study show that both mono and hybrid fiber-reinforced composites have higher flexural and impact strengths at 90-degree orientations. The bamboo fiber and hybrid fiber-reinforced composites have the maximum flexural and impact strengths of 281.25 MPa and 46 kJ/m2, respectively, at their 90-degree orientation. ANOVA and regression were also performed for the mechanical properties. Fiber orientation contributes 77.80% for flexural strength, and fiber type provides 8.32%. The impact strength of a material depends 95.97% on its orientation and up to 2.9% on its fiber type. In comparison with the type of fiber used, fiber orientation plays a crucial role in the production of materials with superior mechanical strength.