Mechanical properties of chemically modified Sansevieria trifasciata/natural rubber/high density polyethylene (STF/NR/HDPE) composites: Effect of silane coupling agent

The main objective of this research is to study the effects of chemical modification on the mechanical properties of treated Sansevieria trifasciata fiber/natural rubber/high density polyethylene (TSTF/NR/HDPE) composites. Processing of STF/NR/HDPE composites was done by using an internal mixer. The processing parameters used were 135°C for temperature and a mixing rotor speed of 55 rpm for 15 minutes. Filler loading was varied from 10% to 40% of STF and the fiber size used was 125 µm. The composite blends obtained then were pressed with a hot press machine to get test samples of 1 mm and 3 mm of thickness. Samples were evaluated via tensile tests, Izod impact test and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results showed that tensile strength and strain value decreased while tensile modulus increased when filler loading increased. Impact strength increased when filler loading increased and began to decrease after 10% of filler amount for treated composites. For untreated composites, impact strength began to decrease after 20% of filler loading. Chemical modification by using silane coupling agent has improved certain mechanical properties of the composites such as tensile strength, strain value and tensile modulus. Adding more amount of filler will also increase the viscosity and the stiffness of the materials.