Processing and Mechanical Property Evaluation of Kenaf-Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer Composites

The development of high-performance engineering products made from natural resources is increasing worldwide, due to renewable and environmental issues. Among the many different types of natural resources, kenaf plants have been extensively exploited over the past few years. Kenaf-glass fibers reinforced composites are manufactured by compression moulding and the tensile, flexural and impact tests are conducted. From the experiment it is found that the processing conditions have little effect on properties except for pressurization which increased tensile and flexural strength at low fiber volume fractions. Examinations using a scanning electron microscopy showed that all the laminates failed due to mechanical loading and the way of fracture of the materials.