A comparative study between jute and glass fiber reinforced composites

Abstract

Recently, natural fiber reinforced polymer composites have become popular over traditional synthetic fiber reinforced polymer composites for automotive, low demanding structural and semi-structural applications. In this work, a comparative study of a natural fiber composite such as jute fabric composite (JFRP) and synthetic fiber composite such as glass fiber composite (GFRP) is presented. The composites were manufactured using hand lay-up and then curing at 90°C for 10 min in a hot press, followed by 24 h room temperature post-curing. The mechanical properties such as tensile and bending of JFRP and GFRP composites, were evaluated and compared. It was revealed that even if GFRPs exhibited significantly higher mechanical properties than JFRPs, environmental impact would still favor JFRPs for non-structural and low load bearing applications.