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Human hair reinforced natural rubber composite: effect of hair loading on mechanical, structural, morphological and thermal behaviour

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Abstract

Human hair is a protein fiber and its potential is barely explored. In this study, human hair/natural rubber (NR) composite was prepared by two-roll mixing method. The effect of hair loading on the structural, morphological and thermal behaviour of the composite were investigated. Human hair reinforced composite was characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) followed by various mechanical characterizations. The mechanical properties showed optimum results for low hair concentrations. After the inclusion of human hair in the rubber matrix, the tensile strength increased by 44%, tear strength by 60%, hardness by 144% and the relative abrasion resistance index by 44%. The thermal stability was also retained after the addition of human hair. The enhancements in mechanical properties were substantiated from SEM and AFM analyses and these were attributed to the proper dispersion of cut human hair in the NR matrix.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are much obliged to Late Mr. Jibin C. Jacob for his guidance throughout the project. We gratefully acknowledge Prof. K. Sreekumar, Professor, Mechanical Engineering for providing necessary suggestions and supports at right point of time. We also sincerely thank Dr. Siby Varghese, Joint Director of R & D, Rubber Research Institute, Kottayam for giving valuable information’s. We thank Dr. Thomaskutty Jose for his suggestions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Deptarment of Mechanical Engineering, Amal Jyothi College of Engineering, Kanjirapally, Kottayam, Kerala, 686518, India

    Richu John Babu, Sony Mathew & Sharon Rony Jacob

  2. Vimala College (Autonomous), Thrissur, Kerala, 680009, India

    Jiji Abraham

  3. Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Amal Jyothi College of Engineering, Kanjirapally, Kottayam, Kerala, 686518, India

    Soney C. George

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  1. Richu John Babu
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Correspondence to Soney C. George.

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Babu, R.J., Mathew, S., Jacob, S.R. et al. Human hair reinforced natural rubber composite: effect of hair loading on mechanical, structural, morphological and thermal behaviour. J Rubber Res 24, 347–354 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42464-021-00101-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42464-021-00101-y

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