Composite Materials in Epoxy Resin Matrix Using Curaua Fibers

Vegetable fibers have good mechanical properties, low density, no toxicity, are renewable and have low cost among other properties. The use of lignocellulosic fibers as reinforcement in polymeric composite materials in substitution of synthetic fibers is in the direction of sustainability. In the current investigation, an evaluation of biocomposite materials elaborated using curaua fibers as reinforcement in an epoxy resin is carried out. The objective of this work is to highlight the influence of the quantity of fiber and the interaction between the fibers and the resin with different chemical treatments looking for a greater adhesiveness of the fibers in the matrix leading to an increase of the composite tensile properties. The treatments with NaOH consist of varying the concentration and the fiber immersions time in the solutions. Steel molds were used to manufacture the test bodies with dimensions according to the standards for mechanical tensile tests. A Taguchi design of experiment is used to identify the effects of fiber fraction, alkaline treatment concentration and treatment time. The data obtained were statistically evaluated, obtaining good results for Curaua fiber compounds, which may in the future replace glass fiber.