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The miscibility between hydrophilic biofibre and hydrophobic matrix has been a challenge in developing polymer biocomposite. This study investigated the anhydride modification effect of propionic and succinic anhydrides on Kenaf fibre’s functional properties in vinyl ester bionanocomposites. Bionanocarbon from oil palm shell agricultural wastes enhanced nanofiller properties in the fibre-matrix interface via the resin transfer moulding technique. The succinylated fibre with the addition of the nanofiller in vinyl ester provided great improvement of the tensile, flexural, and impact strengths of 92.47 ± 1.19 MPa, 108.34 ± 1.40 MPa, and 8.94 ± 0.12 kJ m−2, respectively than the propionylated fibre. The physical, morphological, chemical structural, and thermal properties of bionanocomposites containing 3% bionanocarbon loading showed better enhancement properties. This enhancement was associated with the effect of the anhydride modification and the nanofiller’s homogeneity in bionanocarbon-Kenaf fibre-vinyl ester bonding. It appears that Kenaf fibre modified with propionic and succinic anhydrides incorporated with bionanocarbon can be successfully utilised as reinforcing materials in vinyl ester matrix.

Chitin nanofiber is a nanomaterial produced by pulverizing chitin, the main component of crab shells. Since it has excellent mechanical properties, it is expected to be used as a reinforcing material to strengthen materials. Chitin was mechanically ground in water using a ball mill to prepare nanofibers. The ball size, total ball weight, and milling time were varied, and the resulting water dispersion and the cast film were analyzed to optimize the conditions for efficient preparation. The length and width of the nanofibers were also measured by SEM and AFM observations. The size of the balls affected the level of grinding and the intensity of impact energy on the chitin. The most efficient crushing was achieved when the diameter was 1 mm. The total ball weight directly affects the milling frequency, and milling proceeds as the total weight increases. However, if too many balls occupy the container, the grinding efficiency decreases. Therefore, a total ball weight of 300 g was optimal. Regarding the milling time, the chitin becomes finer depending on the increase of that time. However, after a specific time, the shape did not change much. Therefore, a milling time of approximately 150 min was appropriate.

Natural fiber (NF) is one of the many resources that nature has provided. NFs decompose quickly and are biodegradable, renewable, and cost-effective. It may be scavenged from a variety of plant and animal sources. They are employed as reinforcing materials in polymers for NF composite development. Because of its environmental friendliness and long-term survivability, NF is growing in appeal among academics and researchers for usage in polymer composites. This study aims to offer a thorough evaluation of the most suitable and widely utilized natural fiber-reinforced polymer composites (NFPCs), along with their manufacture, processing, and applications. It also defines several external treatments of NF and their influence on the characteristics of NFPCs. The characteristics of NFPCs are affected by fiber supply, fiber type, and fiber structure. Numerous physical and chemical treatments were tested to see how they affected the thermal and strength properties of natural fiber-reinforced thermoplastic and thermosetting composites. Several polymer composite fabrication techniques were also studied. NFPCs have several disadvantages, notably low fire protection, poor strength properties, and greater moisture absorption, which have prevented their application. It is shown how NFPCs are employed in a variety of industries, particularly automotive and research industries. The review discovered that intentionally changing the regular fiber enhanced the thermochemical and physico-mechanical properties of the NFPCs by means of improving the grip between the fiber surface and the polymer framework. This study aims to provide important and fundamental facts on NF and their composites, which will aid in new investigations, the creation of a creative framework for polymer composite types, and the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals.

The paper presents the numerical simulation results of reinforced sand pads under load. During the simulation, the parameters of the soil base, the pad material, as well as the reinforcing materials varied. Based on the results of the study, a formula for determining the ultimate resistance force of a reinforced sand pad was set.

Polyurea has attracted extensive attention from researchers and engineers in the field of blast and impact protection due to its excellent quasi-static mechanical properties and dynamic mechanical properties. Its mechanical properties and energy absorption capacity have been tuned by means of formulation optimization, molecular dynamics (MD) simulation and the addition of reinforcing materials. Owing to the special molecular structure of polyurea, the mechanism of polyurea protection against blasts and impacts is the simultaneous effect of multiple properties. For different substrates and structures, polyurea needs to provide different performance characteristics, including adhesion, hardness, breaking elongation, etc., depending on the characteristics of the load to which it is subjected. The current article reviews relevant publications in the field of polyurea blast and impact protection, including material optimization, protection mechanisms and applications in blast and impact protection.

In recent times, demand for light weight and high strength materials fabricated from natural fibres has increased tremendously. The use of natural fibres has rapidly increased due to their high availability, low density, and renewable capability over synthetic fibre. Natural leaf fibres are easy to extract from the plant (retting process is easy), which offers high stiffness, less energy consumption, less health risk, environment friendly, and better insulation property than the synthetic fibre-based composite. Natural leaf fibre composites have low machining wear with low cost and excellent performance in engineering applications, and hence established as superior reinforcing materials compared to other plant fibres. In this review, the physical and mechanical properties of different natural leaf fibre-based composites are addressed. The influences of fibre loading and fibre length on mechanical properties are discussed for different matrices-based composite materials. The surface modifications of natural fibre also play a crucial role in improving physical and mechanical properties regarding composite materials due to improved fibre/matrix adhesion. Additionally, the present review also deals with the effect of silane-treated leaf fibre-reinforced thermoset composite, which play an important role in enhancing the mechanical and physical properties of the composites.

The use of polymer materials as matrices for manufacturing composite materials is employed in various technological applications, including vehicle bodies. The advantages of polymer materials include lightness and moisture resistance; however, this material still exhibits low mechanical strength. To increase its mechanical strength, it is necessary to combine it with reinforcing materials derived from natural fibers or synthetic fibers. One way is to strengthen it with empty palm oil signs. After researching composite materials made from mixed polymer materials of polyester polymers with vinyl esters reinforced with palm oil bunch fibers, an increase in flexural strength of 183.34 N was observed, whereas for mixed polyester and vinyl ester matrices without palm oil bunch fibers or pure matrix polymers, the increase was only 138.33 N, this increase occurred in the mixed polyester and vinyl ester polymer matrix, comprising 85 wt% and palm oil bunch fibers at 15 wt%, with an average of 183.34 N compared to pure polyester, which was only 138.33 N, representing an increase of 132.54%. Furthermore, the test results show that the maximum flexural stress value for each matrix material of polyester and vinyl ester polymer mixture and oil palm bunch fibers (FPO) can increase the maximum flexural stress value of pure polyester and vinyl ester mixture polymer without reinforcing fibers from oil palm bunch fibers by 83.092 MPa, while with the addition of oil palm bunch fibers up to 15% by weight can increase the flexural stress value of the material up to 110.086 MPa. The addition of oil palm bunch fibers to the polymer matrix of polyester and vinyl ester mixture by 15% by weight can increase the stress by 132.49%.

Processing methods of aluminium matrix composites (AMCs) have been changing continuously considering the ease of manufacturing and the final quality of the desired composite. The most well-known processing techniques of AMCs such as stir casting, powder metallurgy, spark plasma sintering, squeeze casting, friction stir processing, liquid metal infiltration, spray codeposition, and reactive in situ techniques have elaborated here with their respective distinguishing features and mechanical properties of the fabricated composites. Moreover, this review paper contains the factors affecting the mechanical properties of AMCs as well as their clear justifications. The mechanical properties of AMCs are highly affected by the type of processing method, process parameters, and type, size, and composition of the reinforcing material. Concerning this, the mechanical properties of aluminium and its alloys are highly improved by adding a variety of reinforcing materials in a broader spectrum.

With increasing demand for high-performance materials in modern industry, lightweight, high-strength, and excellent thermal insulation materials have become a hot topic of research. Basalt fibers, due to their excellent mechanical properties and temperature resistance, are widely regarded as an ideal choice for reinforcing materials. This study aims to prepare basalt fiber-reinforced silica aerogels and conduct an in-depth study of its properties. Silica aerogel with a nano-porous structure was successfully prepared using the sol–gel process, and it was reinforced with basalt fibers. The study investigated the effects of different amounts of basalt fiber on the mechanical properties, thermal stability, and thermal insulation performance of the composite aerogels. The results show that the addition of basalt fibers significantly improved the compressive strength of the composite material while maintaining the low thermal conductivity characteristic of the aerogel. This study provides a new approach for the development of high-performance thermal insulation materials and lays the foundation for the application of basalt fibers in the field of aerogels.

Purpose In industry, fused filament fabrication (FFF) offers flexibility and agility by promoting a reduction in costs and in the lead-time (i.e. time-to-market). Nevertheless, FFF parts exhibit some limitations such as lack of accuracy and/or lower mechanical performance. As a result, some alternatives have been developed to overcome some of these restrictions, namely, the formulation of high performance polymers, the creation of fibre-reinforced materials by FFF process and/or the design of new FFF-based technologies for printing composite materials. This work aims to analyze these technologies. Design/methodology/approach This work aims to study and understand the advances in the behaviour of 3D printed parts with enhanced performance by its reinforcement with several shapes and types of fibres from nanoparticles to continuous fibre roving. Thus, a comprehensive survey of significant research studies carried out regarding FFF of fibre-reinforced thermoplastics is provided, giving emphasis to the most relevant and innovative developments or adaptations undergone at hardware level and/or on the production process of the feedstock. Findings It is shown that the different types of reinforcement present different challenges for the printing process with different outcomes in the part performance. Originality/value This review is focused on joining the most important researches dedicated to the process of FFF-printed parts with different types reinforcing materials. By dividing the reinforcements in categories by shape/geometry and method of processing, it is possible to better quantify performance improvements.