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The current study attempts to evaluate the low-velocity impact (LVI) behavior of jute and banana fiber-based hybrid and non hybrid green composites. The proposed composites are fabricated using compression moulding method with variety of positioning of layers namely jute-rubber-jute-rubber-jute (JRJRJ), banana-rubber-banana-rubber-banana (BRBRB), jute-rubber-banana-rubber-jute (JRBRJ) and banana-rubber-jute-rubber-banana (BRJRB). Thus developed composites are subjected to LVI testing using conical and hemispherical shaped impactor in drop weight impact testing machine and different impact velocities of 5 m/s, 10 m/s and 15 m/s. Based on the ability of the proposed composites to absorb energy, coefficient of restitution (CoR), energy loss percentage (ELP), and failure behaviour, the suggested flexible composites' performances are assessed. The study reveals that JRJRJ composite exhibits better energy absorption capability and BRBRB exhibits least energy absorption capability compared to its counterparts. The damage study reveals that hemispherical impactor leads to more damage area due to its larger contact area whereas, conical impactor results in local penetration. Results reveals that inclusion of jute fiber as reinforcement results in better LVI properties compared to banana fiber. It is also clear that the presence of a compliant matrix improves energy absorption and damage resistance in flexible composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of laboratory testing has become more significant to assess abrasion resistance in flexible reinforcement of armour and car structural components. In this study, compliant composite with constituents as woven jute fabric and natural rubber encapsulated in an NR-based B stage cured prepreg were tested for wear due to abrasion under two- and three-body conditions. Flexible composites are fabricated in three different configurations namely Jute/Rubber/Jute, Jute/Rubber/Rubber/Jute and Jute/Rubber/Jute/Rubber/Jute. The present study makes use of abrasive paper with a grit size of 60 and silica sand with size 250 μm as the abrasive medium for two- and three-body abrasion tests, respectively, and the specific rate of wear is calculated. Though the wear trend of the composites follows a similar pattern in the case of two- and three-body wear, the mechanisms governing the wear are found to be different. The morphology of the worn surface is studied with the aid of a scanning electron microscope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sandwich structure offer more advantage in bringing flexural stiffness and energy absorption capabilities in the application of automobile and aerospace components. This paper presents comparison study and analysis of two types of composite sandwich structures, one having Jute Epoxy skins with rubber core and the other having Glass Epoxy skins with rubber core subjected to low velocity normal impact loading. The behaviour of sandwich structure with various parameters such as energy absorption, peak load developed, deformation and von Mises stress and strain, are analyzed using commercially available analysis software. The results confirm that sandwich composite with jute epoxy skin absorbs approximately 20% more energy than glass epoxy skin. The contact force developed in jute epoxy skin is approximately 2.3 times less when compared to glass epoxy skin. von Mises stress developed is less in case of jute epoxy. The sandwich with jute epoxy skin deforms approximately 1.6 times more than that of same geometry of sandwich with glass epoxy skin. Thus exhibiting its elastic nature and making it potential candidate for low velocity impact application.

Determining the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) of the composite laminates is vital for deciding their usage in any engineering applications. The matrix used and its curing characteristics are vital in deciding the ILSS of the composite. Present work deals with an experimental study on adhesive behavior, degree of flexibility, ILSS, and damage mechanism of the novel jute/rubber-based flexible "green" composite. The proposed flexible composites were prepared in three different stacking sequences, namely jute/rubber/jute (JRJ), jute/rubber/rubber/jute (JRRJ), and jute/rubber/jute/rubber/jute (JRJRJ), using compression molding technique. After determining the optimal curing characteristics of the proposed rubber-based matrix, the constituents are tested for their adhesive strength with the matrix which showed that rubber matrix system is compatible with jute fabric and natural rubber sheet. Composites are prepared and degree of flexibility for each stacking sequence is found out. Results pertaining to ILSS show that JRJRJ has better ILSS compared to JRJ and JRRJ. Fractographic analysis using scanning electron microscope reveals the mode of failure of the composites and the mechanism governing their failure. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic study reveals the bonding between the constituents is good enough to be used in composites with flexibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of natural fiber-reinforced polymer composites is becoming prominent in numerous engineering applications over the synthetic fiber-reinforced composites mainly because of their environment-friendly characteristics. This article deals with comparative study on selection of optimal stacking sequence (jute/rubber/jute (JRJ), jute/rubber/rubber/jute, and jute/rubber/jute/rubber/jute) of the jute/natural rubber-based completely biodegradable flexible composite using multi-attribute decision making (MADM) approaches namely hybrid entropy-VIse Kriterijumska Optimizacija kompromisno Resenja (VIKOR) and preference selection index (PSI) methods. Tensile strength, tear strength, specific impact strength, and specific wear rate are used as attributes for MADM methods. The results show good agreement between hybrid entropy-VIKOR and PSI methods used for stacking sequence selection. Scanning electron microscope analysis is carried out to study the failure mechanisms of the proposed flexible composite. The findings of the present study led to the choice of JRJ as the preferred stacking sequence among all the three stacking sequences considered as it exhibited the best overall properties compared to other two configurations of the flexible composite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]