CHARACTERIZATION OF BIODEGRADABLE BANANA FIBER REINFORCED COMPOSITE MATERIALS

Krunal Mahant, Asad Shaikh, Ishan Nadkarni, Vedang Sharma

Abstract: According to industry representatives, the per capita consumption of plastic in India doubled from 4kg in 2006 to 8kg in 2010 and would touch the global average of 27kg per person by 2020. Our mini project surrounds itself with biodegradable composites with Banana fibers as the fiber component, while the matrix used is babul bark gum, thus making the entire composite biodegradable and eco-friendly. This project outlines the fabrication and characterization of composites with fibers of length 10mm to 15mm and the fiber:matrix weight ratio 1:2. Its tensile strength was found to be 3.110 MPa and flexural strength is found out to be 6.996 MPa. The composite formed is found to be useful as a biodegradable utensil, as well as a good thermal insulator.

Keywords: banana fiber; biodegradable; natural matrix; babul bark gum; thermal insulation

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15623/ijret.2018.0705014