Open Access

ARTICLE

Optical and Mechanical Properties of Ramie Fiber/Epoxy Resin Transparent Composites

by Chunhua Liu¹, Dongfang Zou¹, Qinqin Huang¹, Shang Li², Xia Zheng¹, Xingong Li^1,*

1 College of Materials Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, China
2 College of Foreign Languages, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, 410004, China

* Corresponding Author: Xingong Li. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Natural Fibre Composites: Design, Materials Selection and Fabrication)

Journal of Renewable Materials 2023, 11(10), 3613-3624. https://doi.org/10.32604/jrm.2023.028111

Received 30 November 2022; Accepted 26 January 2023; Issue published 10 August 2023

Abstract

The residual resources of ramie fiber-based textile products were used as raw materials. Ramie fiber felt (RF) was modified by NaClO₂ aqueous solution and then impregnated with water-based epoxy resin (WER). RF/WER transparent composite materials were prepared by lamination hot pressing process. The composite materials’color difference, transmittance, haze, density, water absorption, and mechanical properties were determined to assess the effects of NaClO₂ treatment and the number of ramie fiber layers on the properties of the prepared composites. The results showed significantly improved optical and mechanical properties of the RF/WER transparent composites after NaClO₂ treatment. With the increase of ramie fiber layers, the composites’ whiteness, transmittance, and water absorption decreased while the haze increased. For material with three layers, the optical transmittance in the visible light region was 82%, and the haze was 96%, indicating the material has both high transmittance and high haze characteristics. The tensile strength increases with the increase of the number of layers, and the tensile strength of the composite with six layers is 243 MPa. This study broadens the scope of application of ramie fiber as a new option for home decoration materials.

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