Experimental investigation of the mechanical and water absorption properties on fiber stacking sequence and orientation of jute/carbon epoxy hybrid composites

The application of natural fibers could be enhanced manifold by using them together with synthetic fibers, which can potentially reduce the cost of the hybrid composites. In this study, vacuum assisted resin infusion process has been used to fabricate composites using woven jute fibers (six layers) and carbon fibers (four layers) with four different stacking sequences and three different fiber orientations. Tensile, flexural, impact, and water absorption tests are carried out based on the ASTM standards to evaluate the effect of stacking sequence and fiber orientation on the hybrid composites. Experimental results revealed that fiber orientation and stacking sequence of the fiber layers have a significant influence on the mechanical properties of the composite materials. The obtained results showed that placing four layers of carbon fiber centrally and three layers of jute fiber on both sides unidirectionally (J3C4J3) exhibited the highest tensile strength (571 MPa). However, placing six layers of jute fiber centrally and two layers of carbon fiber on both sides unidirectionally (C2J6C2) exhibited the highest flexural strength (455 MPa), impact strength (30 kJ/m2) and the lowest amount of water absorption rate (3.8%). Properties of unidirectional hybrid composites are superior comparing to angle-ply and cross-ply hybrid composites. Although the stacking sequence has a noticeable effect on the tensile strength and water absorption percentage, it has a significant effect on the flexural and impact properties of the hybrid composites. It is worth pointing out that these hybrid composites are a promising material for lightweight load-bearing structural applications. © 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).