Investigation of tensile strength for areca frond/corn starch composites

Objectives: To investigate the tensile strength of fully biodegradable areca frond/corn starch composites. Methods/Statistical Analysis: In this study, frond fibres of areca were used to reinforce starch based matrix. Combination of layup and compression moulding was used to fabricate the composite sheets. To study the tensile behaviour, experiments were designed using the Taguchi method. Six factors and two level combinations in L₈orthogonal array was applied for the experiment. Findings: Maximum strength of 38.92 MPa was obtained for the composition starch (20g), water (80g), vinegar (10g), cellulose acetate (10g), agarose (10g) and glycerol (10g) i.e. P1Q2R2S2T2U1.Results indicate that the plasticizer (glycerol)had the highest significance while binder (agarose) had the least importance. Signal to Noise (S/N) ratios for larger the better quality attributes was considered from the obtained data by carrying out Analysis Of Variance (ANOVA). Other factors affecting the response, (strength) in their decreasing order of importance were water, vinegar, cellulose acetate, corn starch and agarose. Application/Improvements: Biodegradable characteristic and reasonably good strength makes such composites suitable for use in applications like temporary structural partitions, vases for saplings, locomotive seat side panels and bathroom accessories with appropriate coatings.