THE INVESTIGATION OF POLYLACTIC ACID BASED NATURAL FIBER REINFORCED BIOCOMPOSITES FOR AUTOMOTIVE APPLICATIONS

An automotive application with renewable sources as environmentally sustainable solution has been studied for weight reduction. Hemp as non-woven natural fiber (NNF) and Polylactic acid (PLA) non-woven fibers has been used to form continuous mat by needle-punch method. This biobased mat structure was then hot formed to achieve good mechanical properties. The composition of the fiber was 50:50 / NNF:PLA and the density of the final sheet was 1300 gr/m2, the final thickness of the biocomposite after themoforming was 2.2 mm with 2.1 GPa Flexural Modulus and 17 MPa Tensile Strength and 2.3% elongation at break. In this study, the mechanical performance of this biocomposite structure under water immersion, 40ºC and 80ºC was studied. The charpy impact strength was found 21kJ/m2. The major outcome of this study is replacing conventional reinforcement materials with renewable sources which offers lower weight and tolerable mechanical strengths.

Anahtar Kelimeler:

Bio-based PLA polymer, Hemp natural fiber, Biocomposite, Automotive application

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