Dynamic-Mechanical Performance of Sponge Gourd Fiber Reinforced Polyester Composites

The engineering applications of natural materials to replace synthetic ones has marked increased in past decades owing to environmental, societal and economical issues. Among these natural materials, the lignocellulosic fibers obtained from plants are successfully being used as polymer composites reinforcement is substitution of the traditional glass fiber. One relatively unknown lignocellulosic fiber with potential for composite reinforcement is that extracted from the sponge gourd. In the present work, the dynamic-mechanical performance of unsaturated orthophtalic polyester matrix composites was evaluated for different volume fractions of continuous and aligned sponge gourd fiber reinforcement. The results revealed that an increasing incorporation of sponge gourd fiber improved the composite viscoelastic stiffness, while decreasing its glass transition temperature.