Flammability and durability of bamboo fabric reinforced polypropylene composites and their hybrids

Bamboo fabric has excellent mechanical properties and can also contribute substantially to fire resistance in composites. In this study, bamboo fabric has been used to reinforce polypropylene (PP) to produce eco-friendly composites. Hybridisation is a technique which may improve the strength and stiffness as well as the moisture resistance and flammability of natural fibre reinforced composites (NFRCs). The hybrid concept introduced here will reduce the use of the glass fibre in various applications. Bamboo fabric based PP composites were manufactured using compression moulding. The effects of processing parameters were investigated using Taguchi factorial analysis. PP composites with various bamboo and glass compositions were evaluated and compared. Physical, mechanical, thermal and dynamic mechanical properties of the composites were experimentally investigated. The tensile properties of the composites were compared to theoretical calculations. The incorporation of bamboo fabric in PP improves the mechanical properties as well as producing better thermal and dynamic mechanical properties. The incorporation of bamboo and glass fibres in PP improves mechanical, thermal, and dynamic mechanical properties in comparison to those of bamboo polypropylene (BPP) composites. A comparative study of flammability, durability, impact resistance and recycling of the composites was conducted to explore the potential of the BPP and hybrid composites. Flammability tests using a cone calorimeter showed that the hybrid composites performed better than the glass polypropylene (GPP) composites, exhibiting a reduction of at least 30% in heat release rate and smoke release as well as taking longer to ignite. Fire resistance was improved with the presence of bamboo. Hybridisation also improved the water resistance of the composites, the glass layer effectively acting as a barrier to slow down the penetration of the water. The presence of glass fibres preserved the mechanical properties after immersion especially at higher temperature. The presence of outer layers of glass effectively decelerates water diffusion into the composites. Impact resistance was improved with the presence of strong glass fibres and tough bamboo fabric. The hybrid concept, where several layers of glass in a GPP composite are replaced with bamboo fabric, shows promise for the production of high-quality, cost-effective light-weight composites.