Investigation of the dielectric properties of natural fibre and conductive filler reinforced polymer composites

Bio-composites are gaining popularity as materials used in the production of semi-conductors. Dielectric materials are important energy storage devices in an electric circuit due to their ability to get polarized upon the application of an electric field. An investigation of dielectric properties was conducted by preparing specimens consisting of various amounts of coconut fibre, copper powder and HDPE or PLA as the polymer matrix. The dielectric testing revealed the increase of the dielectric constant after the addition of copper to the neat matrix of either polymer. The dielectric loss and the dissipation factor exhibited an increase with the increased loading of fillers. The dielectric constant decreased, along with the dissipation factor and the dielectric loss after the addition of coconut fibre. The results obtained align with existing literature. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.