Akarsh Verma

Abstract Pyrolysis is a viable technique to convert waste tires into recyclable products, as the dumping of these scrap tires pose a serious environmental threat. In the present investigation, a detail methodology to fabricate and characterize the carbonaceous filler (in the form of nanocarbon black obtained from pyrolysis of waste tires) modified epoxy resin composites has been retrieved. The composites with varying carbon filler content (0, 5, 10, and 15 wt%) were fabricated using the manual h

In this research article, the mechanical analysis and microstructure investigation of chicken feather fiber with carbon residuum (CR) (obtained from crumb rubber) fused with epoxy resin hybrid composite has been done. The fibers surface was alkali treated with caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) to improve the interfacial bonding with matrix and reinforcement. Herein, the composites were fabricated using the hand lay‐up technique. Chicken feathers in form of reinforcing fibers were taken in various

Due to their exceptional properties, graphene and hexagonal boron nitride (h‐BN) nanofillers are emerging as potential candidates for reinforcing the polymer‐based nanocomposites. Graphene and h‐BN have comparable mechanical and thermal properties, whereas due to high band gap in h‐BN (~5 eV), have contrasting electrical conductivities. Atomistic modeling techniques are viable alternatives to the costly and time‐consuming experimental techniques, and are accurate enough to predict the mechanical

In this experimental investigation, the authors have fabricated and characterized composites made from pyrolysis oil rubber and epoxy resin. As the dumping of waste scrap tires poses a serious environmental threat, the pyrolysis oil rubber was extracted from these waste tires only. The prepared blend having pyrolysis oil with various weight percentages (wt%) was examined on the basis of various physical, microstructural, mechanical, and thermal tests. The microstructural tests (scanning electron

Abstract Owing to their biodegradable nature and cost-effectiveness, natural fibers have attracted the attention of various material scientists. One such fiber is human hair (HH), which is viscoelastic-plastic in nature and encloses well-characterized microstructures within it. An important aspect is that a strand of HH having a diameter of 60 μm is capable of withstanding a force of 100–150 grams/fiber. However, wastage of HH on an enormous scale poses an environmental challenge. Therefore, the

The objective of this investigation was to elaborate on the influence of grain boundaries on the interfacial thermal conductance between bi-crystalline graphene and polyethylene in a nanocomposite. Reverse non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations were implemented in combination with Lennard-Jones and reactive force field interatomic potential parameters. According to the simulation results, high-energy grain boundary atoms in bi-crystalline graphene played a substantial role in enhancing t

Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) is a synthetic, semi-crystalline, biodegradable and water soluble polymer having moderate mechanical properties. In the present investigation, restriction in water absorption of PVA is achieved by cross-linking with hydrochloric acid (HCl) which is confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and water uptake test. Results suggest that due to the formation of cross-linked bonds thermal and mechanical properties of PVA based cross-linked composite are improv

Abstract In this experimental analysis, fabrication and characterization of biocomposites derived from starch-glycerol resin and sisal fiber have been done using the wet hand lay-up technique. Fibers having different weight percentage and 2–3-mm length have been taken for the investigation. The surface of fibers was treated with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) to improve the interphase bonding. The mechanical tests of composites were investigated in accordance with ASTM standards. Various other tests th

Graphene is emerging as a versatile material with a diverse field of applications. Synthesis techniques for graphene introduce several topological defects such as vacancies, dislocations and Stone-Thrower-Wales (STW) defects. Among them STW defects are generated without deleting any atom from the lattice position, but are introduced by rotating single C-C bonds. In this article, molecular dynamics based simulations have been performed to study the effect of STW defects on the fracture toughness

The aim of this article is to study the effects of functional groups such as hydroxyl, epoxide and carboxyl on the fracture toughness of graphene. These functional groups form the backbone of the intrinsic atomic structure of graphene oxide (GO). Molecular dynamics based simulations were performed in conjunction with reactive force field parameters to capture the Mode-I fracture toughness of functionalised graphene. Simulations were performed in stages, to study the effect of these functional gr

Abstract In this article, biocomposites derived from a starch-glycerol biodegradable matrix reinforced with jute fibers were fabricated using the wet hand lay-up and compression moulding techniques. Samples having different weight percentages of jute fiber in the starch matrix were analyzed. The fiber’s surface was chemically treated by alkaline sodium hydroxide to improve the interphase bonding between the fiber and the matrix. Tensile tests for the composites were done and the sample with high

In this article, a detailed systematic methodology to fabricate and characterize the diverse properties of soy protein and sisal fiber reinforced green composites has been presented. After fabrication by hand lay-up and solution casting method, these composites with varying sisal fiber weight percentages (0, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10) were put to various characterization tests. The surfaces of sisal fiber were treated with sodium hydroxide to enhance its interfacial bonding properties. The fabricated

Abstract In this experimental investigation, the authors have analyzed the physical and thermal behavior of a chicken feather fiber (CFF) and crumb rubber (CR)-filled epoxy hybrid composite. Chicken feathers were treated with sodium hydroxide to improve their interfacial bonding and were taken in different weight percentages of 1, 3, 5, and 7. A fabricated composite with epoxy resin as the host polymer matrix was prepared using the hand layup technique. These composites with 5 wt. % of CFF and v