Thermal and Mechanical Investigation of Interlaminate Glass/Curaua Hybrid Polymer Composites

The combination of synthetic and vegetable fibers in a polyester matrix can produce a hybrid material that may substitute pure glass composites depending on the application. Analysis of their dynamical mechanical properties is important, enabling a better understanding of the structure/property relationship. In this context, various curaua (C) /glass (G) interlaminar hybrid composites were hot compress molded with an overall fiber loading of 30 vol.% and a volume ratio of 1: 1 with the aim of studying the influence of the fiber stacking sequence on their thermal, mechanical, and dynamic mechanical properties. Higher hardness was observed when glass fiber was near the surface being tested, and the presence of two consecutive glass layers yielded competitive impact properties in comparison with pure glass composite. In the dynamic mechanical analysis, highest storage modulus values were obtained for the pure glass composite, followed by [G(2)/C-2](s), whereas pure curaua yielded the lowest values. Higher dissipation energy was also found for the [G(2)/C-2](s) composite, attributed to the four curaua layers grouped near the mid-plane. The higher glass transition temperature and the largest tan delta peak height and peak width at half-height was found for the pure glass composite.