Processing and Mechanical Properties of Basalt Fibre-Reinforced Thermoplastic Composites
Xinying Deng, Ming Shun Hoo, Yi Wen Cheah, Le Quan Ngoc Tran
Abstract
Basalt fibre is derived from volcanic rocks and has similar mechanical properties as glass fibre. However, poor fibre-matrix compatibility and processing issues are the main factors that have restricted the mechanical performance of basalt fibre-reinforced thermoplastic composites (BFRTP). In this work, basalt continuous fibre composites with polypropylene (PP) and polycarbonate (PC) matrices were studied. The composites were processed by compression moulding, and a processing study was conducted to achieve good quality composites. For the BF-PC composites, the optimisation of material preparation and processing steps allowed the polymer to impregnate the fibres with minimal fibre movements, hence improving impregnation and mechanical properties. For BF-PP composites, a compatibiliser was required to improve fibre-matrix compatibility. The compatibiliser significantly improved the tensile and impact strength values for short BF-PP composites and continued to increase at 40 wt%. Furthermore, the analytical modelling of the Young's moduli indicated that the induced fibre orientation during processing for short BF-PP composites and unidirectional (UD) BF-PC composites had better stress transfer than that of UD BF-PP composites.