Fiber reinforced composite - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

A fiber-reinforced composite (FRC) consists of three components: (i) the fibers as the discontinuous or dispersed phase, (ii) the matrix as the continuous phase, and (iii) the fine interphase region, also known as the interface. This is a type of advanced composite group, which makes use of rice husk, rice hull, and plastic as ingredients. This technology involves a method of refining, blending, and compounding natural fibers from cellulosic waste streams to form a high-strength fiber composite material in a polymer matrix. The designated waste or base raw materials used in this instance are those of waste thermoplastics and various categories of cellulosic waste including rice husk and saw dust.

FRC is high-performance fiber composite achieved and made possible by cross-linking cellulosic fiber molecules with resins in the FRC material matrix through a proprietary molecular re-engineering process, yielding a product of exceptional structural properties.

Through this feat of molecular re-engineering selected physical and structural properties of wood are successfully cloned and vested in the FRC product, in addition to other critical attributes to yield performance properties superior to contemporary wood.

This material, unlike other composites, can be recycled up to 20 times, allowing scrap FRC to be reused again and again.

The failure mechanisms in FRC materials include delamination

Delamination

Delamination is a mode of failure for composite materials. Modes of failure are also known as 'failure mechanisms'. In laminated materials, repeated cyclic stresses, impact, and so on can cause layers to separate, forming a mica-like structure of separate layers, with significant loss of mechanical...

, intralaminar matrix cracking, longitudinal matrix splitting, fiber/matrix debonding, fiber pull-out, and fiber fracture .

Difference between wood plastic composite and fiber-reinforced composite:

Features	Plastic lumber Plastic lumber Plastic lumber is a 100% recyclable material lumber or timber made of recycled plastic. Its most widespread use is in outdoor deck floors, but it is also used for railings, fences, landscaping timbers, cladding and siding, park benches, molding and trim, window and door frames, and indoor furniture...	Wood plastic composite	FRC	Wood Wood Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
Recyclable
House Construction
Water Absorption	0.00%	0.8% and above	0.3% and below	10% and above

Properties

Tensile Strength	ASTM D 638	15.9 MPa
Flexural Strength	ASTM D 790	280 MPa
Flexural Modulus	ASTM D 790	1582 MPa
Failure Load	ASTM D 1761	1.5 KN - 20.8 KN
Compressive Strength		20.7MPa
Heat Reversion	BS EN 743 : 1995	0.45%
Water Absorption	ASTM D 570	0.34%
Termite Resistant	FRIM Test Method	3.6

Application

There are also applications in the market, which utilize only waste materials. Its most widespread use is in outdoor deck floors, but it is also used for railings, fences, landscaping timbers, cladding and siding, park benches, molding and trim, window and door frames, and indoor furniture. See for example the work of Waste for Life, which collaborates with garbage scavenging cooperatives to create fiber-reinforced building materials and domestic problems from the waste their members collect: Homepage of Waste for Life

Properties

Application

See also