Effect of quenching process on mechanical properties of flax/polypropylene composites

Abstract

Flax/polypropylene needle - punched nonwovens (550 g /m²) have been produced and then used as a preform for the production of composites. In this study, better infiltration of polypropylene melt into the flax fibres has been achieved by altering the crystal structure of polypropylene in the preform. A modified sequence of production of composites is also proposed. The proposed method yields composite with 25, 98 and, 91% improvement in tensile, flexural and short beam strength properties as compared to the conventional method of manufacturing.