Physical Properties of Epoxy Composites Filled with Micro-sized Pistachio Shell Particulates

Mechanical

The present work aims at developing a class of polymer composites consisting of thermoset polymer i.e. epoxy as a matrix material with pistachio shell in the form of micro-particulates as a filler material. A set of composites with varying filler loading has been fabricated by a simple hand lay-up technique. The effect of filler content on the physical properties of such fabricated samples is investigated and presented in this work. The various properties evaluated are density, voids content and water absorption rate. From the experimental results, it is observed that the inclusion of micro-sized pistachio shell particulates in the epoxy resin results in the reduction of its density as a function of filler loading. It is also observed that the voids generated in the composite increase with filler loading. Further, the inclusion of these bio-particulates increases the water uptake behaviour of the composite as a function of filler loading due to the hydrophilic nature of the bio-filler.

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