Production of Polyester Composite Material Using Pine Cone Powder as Reinforcement

Abstract

Natural fibers reinforced polymer composites have a large area as a progressive material in such industrial applications. Although pine cones have the fibrillar morphology and good mechanical properties they are unusually used as reinforcement in polymer composites. In this study, polymer matrix composites were produced using pine cone waste as reinforcement and polyester as polymer matrix with casting method. Before mixing the polyester and filler the pine cones were chemically treated to avoid the weak coherence between the natural fibers and polymer matrix and to clean their surface and conoborate binding with the polymer. Some mechanical and physical properties of composite materials were analyzed and the composites tested to determine their flexural strength, elastic modulus, hardness also physical features such as density and water absorption was investigated. Increasing ratio of pine cone filler had led to increase of flexural strength values and decrease of elastic modulus. Chemical treatment applied for pine cones reduced the increasing ratio of flexural strength and also decreasing ratio of elastic modulus. Increasing amounts of cones reduced the impact strength and it is supported by increase amount of open porosity. Because the high amount of pine cone has increased both the porosity of composite and water absorption