Effect of agglomerated zirconia-toughened mullite on the mechanical properties of giant cane fiber mat epoxy laminated composites

This paper depicts the development and characterizations of laminated composites made with cellulosic giant cane (Arundinaria gigantea) fiber mats and epoxy resin. Zirconia-toughened mullite (ZTM) is used as a filler material in the laminated composite which was prepared from sillimanite through plasma processing technique. The mechanical characterizations of this composite have been carried out as per ASTM standards to evaluate its usability as a structural material. The effects of varying weight percentages of the filler and two different fiber orientations namely, angle-ply [$+45^{\circ}/-45^{\circ}/+45^{\circ}$] and balanced cross-ply [$0^{\circ}/90^{\circ}/0^{\circ}$] on the physical and mechanical properties such as density, microhardness, impact strength, tensile strength and interlaminar shear strength of the layered composite specimens have been investigated. The study indicates that the inclusion of zirconia-toughened mullite in the composite laminate as filler improves its mechanical properties. Moreover, the use of giant cane fiber mat in the laminate is more eco-friendly than the synthetic fibers. This research also helps in generating additional data to enrich the repository of natural fiber reinforced laminated composites.