Hybridization Effect of Glass Fibre on Mechanical, Morphological and Thermal Properties of Polypropylene-Bamboo/Glass Fibre Hybrid Composites

Polypropylene/bamboo fibre-reinforced composites (BFRP) and polypropylene-bamboo/glass fibre based hybrid composites (BGRP) using an intermeshing counter-rotating twin-screw extruder followed by injection moulding in which maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene (MAPP) was used as a compatibilizer. The effect of hybridization on the mechanical performance of hybrid composites has been assessed. It was observed that replacement of 15 wt.% of bamboo fibre by 15 wt.% of glass fibre with 2 wt.% of MAPP on a total amount of 30 wt.% of fibre content showed optimum mechanical performance. The water uptake of the hybrid composites was also found to be less than that of their unhybridized counterpart. The crystallization, melting behaviour and thermal stability of the hybrid composites were investigated employing differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA ). TGA thermograms showed an increase in thermal stability of the matrix polymer after incorporation of bamboo and glass fibres, confirming the effect of hybridization and efficient fibre matrix interfacial adhesion. The fibre-matrix interfacial morphology of the tensile fractured specimens was studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) which showed less fibre pullout and fewer gaps between the fibre and the base matrix in case of MAPP-treated hybrid composites.