Impact properties of banana/coir/palm/hexagonal boron nitride particles reinforced epoxy composites

Natural fiber-reinforced polymer composites have gained attention due to their biodegradability, lower density and cost-effectiveness. In this study, the impact strength of banana fibre, coir fibre, palm fibre powder, individually used with hexagonal Boron Nitride (h-BN) particles in the epoxy polymer composites, is studied. The Response Surface Methodology (RSM), based on a Box-Behnken design, helps to analyze the effects of h-BN content (wt. %), fiber content (wt. %) and type of fibers on impact strength. The Izod test is carried out to find the impact strength of each sample. ANOVA and regression equations are used to examine the result. It is noticed that the impact strength of the composite is improved with a rise in h-BN and fiber content (wt. %). It is also concluded that the optimum composition is 3.95 wt. % of h-BN and 5 wt. % of palm fiber content exhibits the highest impact strength of 0.32 kJ/m ² . A confirmation test is also conducted to confirm the same. The findings demonstrate that the mechanical properties of the epoxy-palm fiber composite are affected by the properties of palm fiber. The morphological studies shows superior interfacial bonding between the matrix and fiber and also uniform distribution of the reinforcement particle helps in improving the mechanical properties of the materials.