Polymer Composite
Daily Maria Gallegos; Denis Mayta; Gerhard Paúl Rodriguez; Fredy Alberto Huaman; Fernando Alonso Cuzziramos
Abstract
The effect of the addition of alpaca fibers on the mechanical response of geopolymeric mortars was studied using uniaxial compression tests. The studied mortars were manufactured by mixing mining tailings, fine sand and variable percentages of alpaca wool fibers. The mechanical results show a higher ...
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The effect of the addition of alpaca fibers on the mechanical response of geopolymeric mortars was studied using uniaxial compression tests. The studied mortars were manufactured by mixing mining tailings, fine sand and variable percentages of alpaca wool fibers. The mechanical results show a higher degree of deformation, up to 6%, for the mortar mixtures with higher amounts of wool fiber in their composition, that is, the decrease in maximum compressive strength was demonstrated as the volume increased of added fibers, the values were from 32 to 9 MPa for samples with 0 and 8 % Vol. of added fibers, respectively. On the other hand, studies of the real density and the average porosity were carried out, obtaining values of 2.59 g/cm3 and 31 %, respectively. Additionally, the morphological analysis was carried out using microscopy in which a continuous binder geopolymer phase could be seen and within this phase a phase of sand and fibers.

Himyan Mohammed; Matli Penchal Reddy; Fareeha Ubaid; Abdul Shakoor; Adel Mohamed Amer Mohamed
Abstract
In this study, Al-CeO2 nanocomposites containing various concentrations of reinforcement were fabricated by ball milling and microwave sintering process. A comparison of structural and mechanical properties of the developed nanocomposites is presented to elucidate the effect of reinforcement. Different ...
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In this study, Al-CeO2 nanocomposites containing various concentrations of reinforcement were fabricated by ball milling and microwave sintering process. A comparison of structural and mechanical properties of the developed nanocomposites is presented to elucidate the effect of reinforcement. Different characterizing tools such as X-ray diffractometer (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), surface profilometrer, microhardness tester and universal compression testing machines were employed. XRD and SEM/EDX analyses reveal the presence and uniform distribution of CeO2 nanoparticles into the Al matrix. A significant increase in microhardness and compressive strength is noticed with increasing concentration of CeO2 nanoparticles due to a dispersion hardening effect of the reinforcement. Our study indicates that the concentration of reinforcement has a significant influence of the properties of Al-CeO2 nanocomposites. It is further noticed that Al-2.0 vol.% CeO2 nanocomposite demonstrates the best performance as compared to pure Al and other developed nanocomposites.
