The properties of snake fruit and kluwak pits reinforced PP: Exploring their application for automobile part

What is it about?

There is a demand for automotive industry to use light weighting materials to achieve better fuel efficiency and to address the increasing of the environmental concern. Biocomposites which incorporate natural fibers or fillers to reinforce the plastic are the promising material in the future to get the weight out. In this work, biocomposites of PP were produced using two different natural fillers, i.e. ground snake fruit (Salacca zalacca) pit and outer shell pit of kluwak fruit (Pangium edule) with particle size of < 100 µm. Both fillers were added to PP with a composition of 5 to 30 wt.% with 5 wt.% increment. Bio composite samples were prepared using hot pressing at temperature of 190 °C. Area density was measured, and their flexural strength was tested in accordance with ASTM D790-17. SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy was used to perform a micro structural evaluation. Flexural strength increases with the increase of filler quantity. For bio composites filled with particles of snake fruit pit, they show flexural strength in the range of 39.48 - 42.83 MPa with the maximum was obtained from sample with a composition of 15 wt. %. In the case of the composites filled with ground kluwak pits, they produced flexural strength of 37.36 - 43.56 MPa with the maximum was obtained from sample with a composition of 30 wt. %. The flexural strength displayed by both bio composites met the required strength of the existing material (wood board) that was used by the automotive industry for package tray product of a Japanese car.

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Photo by Heri Susilo on Unsplash

Photo by Heri Susilo on Unsplash