A Study on Alkali Treatment Influence on Prosopis Juliflora Fiber-Reinforced Epoxy Composites

Usage of natural fibers as reinforcing materials in composites has increased in recent years, due to their exceptional advantages like lightweight, low cost and biodegradable. To overcome the drawbacks in using the natural fibers due to the lack of bonding, higher moisture absorption and lower melting point, surface modification by alkali treatment on prosopis juliflora fibers with different weight concentrations of NaOH (5%, 10% and 15%) were carried out in the present work. These fibers have been used as reinforcements in an epoxy matrix. The outcomes of fiber alteration along with different weight proportions (10, 15, 20 and 25 wt%) of prosopis juliflora on the mechanical and water absorption properties were investigated. The outcomes of fiber-loading and alkali treatments on the aforementioned properties were investigated. The alkali behavior of fiber attained better results by improving the bond between the fiber surface and polymer matrix and also increased the fiber strength. The water absorption test showed that NaOH-treated fiber composites reveal a smaller amount of water absorption than untreated prosopis juliflora fiber-reinforced composites. The alkali conducts effect on the prosopis juliflora fibers have been distinguished by means of infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) study and microscopy analysis (SEM).