Effect of rice husk ash silicon nitride on mechanical, wear, thermal conductivity, and flammability behavior of aluminized glass-kenaf fiber-reinforced polyester composite

The main goal of this present research was to find out how combining hybridized fiber (aluminized glass and kenaf fiber) and biomass-derived bioceramic silicon nitride (Si3N4) affected the mechanical, wear, thermal conductivity, and flammability behavior of a composite made of polyester. Using a thermo-chemical method, rice husk ash was used to create Si3N4, which was then surface-treated with an aminosilane. Compression molding was used to create the composites, and they were then post-cured at 120 °C. The study’s findings showed that the mechanical properties were enhanced by the inclusion of Si3N4 in addition to aluminized glass/kenaf fiber. Composite A3, which contains 3 vol.% Si3N4, has the improved tensile, flexural, impact, interlaminar shear strength, and compression strength of 138 MPa, 192 MPa, 6.7 J/m, 28 MPa, and 152 MPa. The SEM fractographs showed enhanced toughness in the matrix and highly reactive phases of the reinforcements. Similarly, the wear resistance was increased to 0.12 mm3/Nm of sp. wear rate and 0.24 coefficient of friction by the composite designation A4 with 5 vol. % of Si3N4. Furthermore, the Si3N4-rich A4 composite has the lowest recorded thermal conductivity of 0.214 W/mK. Additionally, the A4 designation explicated a lowest flame propagation speed of 6.14 mm/min (V-0 flame rating) with a lower water absorption % of 0.008. Therefore, it is worthwhile to fully incorporate Si3N4 in addition to hybridized fiber to enhance load bearing capacity, increase wear resistance, and reduce heat transfer in composites with potential structural, automotive, drones, and military equipment applications.