Effect of fiber orientation on the tensile and bending strength of salacca fiber composites reinforced with Anadara granosa powder

Abstract

The use of natural fibers as composite reinforcement materials continues to be developed to reduce dependence on less environmentally friendly synthetic materials. However, studies on the effect of fiber orientation in hybrid composites based on Salacca zalacca fiber and Anadara granosa shell powder are still limited. This study aims to analyze the effect of fiber orientation on the mechanical properties of epoxy-matrix composites. The composites were fabricated using the hand lay-up method with a volume fraction of 40% epoxy, 50% fiber, and 10% shell powder. The fibers were treated with 10% KOH alkali for 4 hours. The fiber orientations used were 0°/0°/0°, 0°/+45°/0°, and 0°/+90°/0°. Tensile and flexural tests were conducted to evaluate the composite mechanical properties. The results showed that the 0°/0°/0° orientation produced the highest tensile and flexural strengths, at 33.19 MPa and 135.5 MPa, respectively. The 0°/+45°/0° and 0°/+90°/0° orientations showed a decrease in strength due to non-uniform stress distribution. This study concluded that the hybrid composite based on snake fruit stem fiber and Anadara granosa shell powder has the potential as an environmentally friendly alternative material for automotive applications. Natural fiber-reinforced composites have attracted increasing attention as sustainable alternatives to synthetic composite materials. However, studies investigating the effect of fiber orientation in hybrid composites based on Salacca zalacca fiber and Anadara granosa shell powder remain limited. This study aims to evaluate the influence of fiber orientation on the tensile and flexural properties of epoxy-based hybrid composites. The composites were fabricated using the hand lay-up method with a composition of 40% epoxy resin, 50% Salacca fiber, and 10% Anadara granosa shell powder. Prior to fabrication, the fibers were treated with a 10% KOH alkaline solution for 4 hours to improve interfacial bonding. Three fiber orientations were investigated: 0°/0°/0°, 0°/+45°/0°, and 0°/90°/0°. Tensile and flexural tests were conducted to characterize the mechanical performance of the composites. The results indicated that the 0°/0°/0° orientation exhibited the highest tensile and flexural strengths of 33.19 MPa and 135.5 MPa, respectively. In contrast, the 0°/+45°/0° and 0°/90°/0° orientations showed reduced mechanical performance due to inefficient load transfer and non-uniform stress distribution. These findings demonstrate that fiber orientation significantly affects the mechanical properties of hybrid composites and highlight the potential of Salacca fiber and Anadara granosa shell powder as sustainable reinforcement materials for lightweight automotive applications.