QUALIFYING KENAF FIBERS AS INGREDIENTS OF AN INNOVATIVE STRUCTURAL COMPOSITE

AN INNOVATIVE STRUCTURAL CONCEPT EMPLOYS A FIBER-REINFORCED-POLYMER HONEYCOMB (FRPH) COMPOSITE WHOSE COST-EFFECTIVENESS CAN BE POTENTIALLY IMPROVED--ALONG WITH REDUCING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS DURING ITS MANUFACTURE--BY QUALIFYING NATURAL FIBERS, SUCH AS FROM KENAF, TO REPLACE SYNTHETIC FIBERS, SUCH AS FIBERGLASS. THIS SUBSTITUTION COULD ENABLE MANUFACTURING STRUCTURAL PRODUCTS THAT ARE LOWER IN DENSITY AND TOUGHER THAN WHEN USING FIBERGLASS, WHILE STILL PROVIDING PRODUCTS THAT ARE DURABLE, RESILIENT, CORROSION-RESISTANT, AND CAPABLE OF CONTINUOUS, HIGH-VOLUME MACHINE FABRICATION. THE OBJECTIVE OF THE RPOROSED PHASE I PROJECT IS TO PERFORM A FEASIBILITY STUDY TO EXAMINE WHETHER KENAF FIBERS CAB BE QUALIFIED FOR THIS SUBSTITUTION. TO OBTAIN BASIC ENGINEERING DATA, THREE SETS OF CANDIDATE EXPERIMENTAL FRPH PANELS WILL BE DESIGNED AND FABRICATED USING KENAF FIBERS. THEY WILL BE OF LOW, MEDIUM, AND HIGH DENSITIES, RESPECTIVELY. EACH SET OF PANELS WILL BE COMPRISED OF SEVERAL SPECIMENTS OF THRE GEOMETRIC CONFIGURATIONS OF REINFORING KENAF FIBERS; (1) LOOSE-STRAND MAT: (2) UNIAXIAL FIBERS IN THE FORM OF TWINE OR STRING; AN ND (3) WOVEN FABRICS. MECHANICAL AND FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES OF THESE STRUCTURAL PANELS WILL BE LABORATORY TESTED TO EXPLORE THE FEASIBILITY OF USING KENAF IF FRPH STRUCTURAL APPLICATIONS. ACOUSTIC-EMISSION TECHNIQUES WILL BE USED AS A DIAGNOSTIC FOR EXAMINING FAILURE MODES.