Effect of Pumice-Based Nanosilica and Sodium Silicate Addition on Impact Strength of GFRP Composite Willy Akhsani Taqwim (a), Kuncoro Diharjo (a*), Bambang Kusharjanta (a)
a) Mechanical Engineering Dept., Engineering Faculty, Sebelas Maret University, Indonesia
*kuncorodiharjo[at]ft.uns.ac.id
Abstract
The background of this research is the abundant availability of pumice for producing nanosilica as filler in GFRP composite. The sodium silicate is also used to reduce void in the composite. Material characterization was carried out by impact testing supported with SEM observations. This study aims to investigate the effect of pumice-based nanosilica particles and sodium silicate addition on the impact properties of GFRP composite. The composite was produced using hand lay-up and press molding methods for 20% glass fiber and 10% filler content (w/w). The specimens were tested using izod impact tester and SEM observation. GFRP composite with 10 wt% of pumice-based nanosilica filler has the highest impact strength among other filled composites, and the lowest is the composite with 5 wt% of pumice-based nanosilica and 5 wt% sodium silicate. The result of this study is to meet the optimization of impact and fire resistance properties as the effect of flame retardant addition (pumice-based nanosilica and sodium silicate) on the GFRP composite in the scope of mechanical engineering, especially in the field of composite materials.
