Comparison of Tensile, and Impact Strength of GFRP/Banana (20 wt.%) and CFRP/Banana (20 wt.%) Composite

Abstract: In recent years, with the growing demand for advanced materials, the need for the development of hybrid composites is increasing rapidly. A wide variety of studies have been going on about the natural fiber. Natural fiber uses were increased due to its eco-friendly nature, availability, low cost, ease of fabrication, light weight, biodegradability, high strength, and wide range of engineering applications. The natural fiber, such as banana fiber, offers its availability, low cost, and biodegradability, making it a better alternate to synthetic fiber. This study aims to compare the tensile and impact strength of GFRP/banana (20 wt%) and CFRP/banana (20 wt%) polymer composites. The composites are fabricated by using the hand lay-up method. One is reinforced with glass fiber with banana fiber (20 wt%) and other is the carbon fiber with banana fiber (20 wt%). There are two layers of natural fibers and three layers of carbon and glass in two different composites. Both composites were being prepared by the same procedure. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact strength and tensile strength of both the materials. The experimental results showed that CFRP/banana (20 wt.%) is better tensile strength than GFRP/banana (20 wt.%) in all three tests.

Keywords: Banana fiber, Glass fiber, Carbon fiber, Impact strength, Tensile strength.