Experimental and numerical study on physico-mechanical properties and Taguchi's designed abrasive wear behavior of hemp/nettle-polyester hybrid composite

The present research focuses on studying the physical, mechanical, and abrasive wear behavior of the hemp/nettle natural fiber woven mat reinforced with the polyester matrix. The hemp and nettle fibers woven mats were reinforced into the polyester matrix by simple hand-layup, and after that compression molding process was used to fabricate the composites. The water absorption, tensile, flexural, and impact properties were studied using a hemp/nettle hybrid composite. This study found that increasing the amount of hemp and nettle fiber in polyester from 3 to 9 wt% increased the mechanical properties of hybrid composites. The higher weight percentage (9 wt%) of hemp/nettle fiber in polyester hybrid composites exhibited the highest tensile (42.41 MPa), flexural (78.52 MPa), impact (22.72 kJ/m(2)) strength, and a higher hardness value of 46.7 HV. Finite element analysis simulation is conducted on mechanical properties (tensile, flexural, and impact strength). The minimum abrasive specific wear rate of hybrid composites is 0.00827 mm(3)/Nm found in the 9 wt% of hemp/nettle fiber composite at 10 N of normal load and 200 RPM, through Taguchi's approach (L-9 orthogonal array). The contribution of control factors in a hybrid composite is studied by analysis of variance. The surface morphological studies were performed to examine the abraded worn surface by abrasive wear to study the behavior of the wear mechanism using the scanning electron microscope.