The effect of adding natural materials waste on the mechanical properties and water absorption of epoxy composite using grey relations analysis

Recently, there has been a tendency for scientific studies to deal with natural materials as fillers and reinforcement for polymer composites, which are used in many different applications due to their environmentally friendly properties when compared to synthetic materials. The current study aims to preserve the environment by dealing with natural materials and their influence on the mechanical properties and water absorption property of the polymer composites. In this study, epoxy composites were produced from local natural sourced non-hazardous raw natural materials using grey relational analysis (GRG). The materials used for fabrication include micro-filler of pollen palm 50 μm, seashell 75 μm and epoxy resin. Nine different composites were prepared using pollen palm and seashell as reinforcement material by varying the wt % of the micro-filler. Rule of the mixture was used for formulation and wt % of (0.5, 1 and 1.5) % reinforcement and 99.5, 99 and 98.5 % epoxy (binder) were used for composites. Grey relational analysis was conducted in order to scale the multi-response performance to a single response. The results indicate that optimum performance can be achieved with the addition of 1.5 wt % micro-filler of seashell, which achieved the first rank, while the second rank achieved by 0.5 wt % micro-filler of palm pollen and seashell when compared to other composites. The addition of micro-fillers has improved greatly the mechanical properties of epoxy composites. The loading of micro-fillers has influenced the water absorption property of composites based epoxy in ascending order

Life Cycle Assessment of Circular Bio-Based Construction

The construction sector is a large consumer of non-renewable resources and it is responsible of 44% of global energy related CO2 emissions. Circular economy is an emerging strategy that has potential to make significant improvements in the construction industry, by taking efficient and sustainable actions against climate change. The principles of circular economy are to minimise the waste of resources, by maximizing materials' performances, whilst in use, and recycle and regenerate them at the end of their service life. Natural materials can potentially be suitable in this strategy, due to the use of renewable resources, carbon sequestration potential, and high suitability for reuse and recycling. The development of bio-based wall panel is a first step into the integration of a circular economy approach in the construction sector. In this study, vapour responsive bio-based panel prototypes with low thermal transmittance (U<0.20 W/m2K) are being designed, taking into consideration the burdens and benefits of natural materials over their entire life cycle. The challenge is to assess the environmental impact of the panels during their design and production, maximise performance and life span, when in use, and regenerate and recycle panel components at the end of the service life. In this paper, a life cycle assessment of a prototype bio-based panel designed with circular economy principles is investigated. The environmental impact of the panel is analysed to investigate limitation in assessing emissions and use of resources in a circular prospective. The objective of the research is to integrate environmental impact analysis during the early stage of panel design. This will put the basis for the development of a sustainable and circular building industry and for identifying area of improvements for the development of sustainable circular panels with expected hygrothermal benefits conferred using bio-based materials.

Simple synthesis of self-assembled nacre-like materials with 3D periodic layers from nanochitin via hydrogelation and mineralization

The superb mechanical properties of some natural materials usually result from highly ordered, multiscale and hierarchical architectures such as bone, nacre, exoskeleton etc. Nonetheless, the gene regulated process can not...

Peningkatan Pengetahuan Studi Etnomedisin Pada Mahasiswa Farmasi

The topic of research on the exploration of natural materials is still a favorite among pharmacy students. This is also supported by the biodiversity in Indonesia which is spread across the region. Students need more insight and description of research topics related to natural product products, one of which is ethnomedicine studies. Based on this background, it is necessary to provide education related to ethnomedicine studies from experts to increase students' knowledge about the topic of exploring medicinal herbs and plants from ethnic groups in Indonesia. Education is carried out using lecture and discussion methods in webinars using virtual meeting applications with pretest and posttest. The webinar was attended by 239 participants, with the majority being pharmacy students from several Indonesian pharmacy universities. From the results of the pretest, it is known that the average knowledge of participants about ethnomedicine is 53.89. After the expert's explanation, the participants' knowledge increased with the average post-test score of 71.21. Participants' knowledge of the ethnomedicine study increased after being given education.

Evaluation of Mechanical and Tribological Properties of Corn Cob-Reinforced Epoxy-Based Composites—Theoretical and Experimental Study

Epoxy is considered to be the most popular polymer and is widely used in various engineering applications. However, environmental considerations require natural materials-based epoxy. This necessity results in further utilization of natural materials as a natural reinforcement for different types of composites. Corn cob is an example of a natural material that can be considered as an agricultural waste. The objective of the present work is to improve the economic feasibility of corn cob by converting the original corn cob material into powder to be utilized in reinforcing epoxy-based composites. In the experiment, the corn cob was crushed and ground using a grain miller before it was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The corn cob powder was added to the epoxy with different weight fractions (2, 4, 6, 8, 10 wt%). In order to prevent corn cob powder agglomeration and ensure homogeneous distribution of the reinforcement inside the epoxy, the ultrasonic technique and a mechanical stirrer were used. Then, the composite’s chemical compositions were evaluated using X-ray diffraction (XRD). The mechanical experiments showed an improvement in the Young’s modulus and compressive yield strength of the epoxy composites, increasing corn cob up to 8 wt% by 21.26% and 22.22%, respectively. Furthermore, tribological tests revealed that reinforcing epoxy with 8 wt% corn cob can decrease the coefficient of friction by 35% and increase wear resistance by 4.8%. A finite element model for the frictional process was constructed to identify different contact stresses and evaluate the load-carrying capacity of the epoxy composites. The finite element model showed agreement with the experimental results. An epoxy containing 8 wt% corn cob demonstrated the optimal mechanical and tribological properties. The rubbed surfaces were investigated by SEM to identify the wear mechanism of different composites.

Eksplorasi Perintang Warna Alami pada Kualitas Batik

Exploration is important because it has the potential to increase creativity in the use of natural materials that are able to maintain the existence of written batik without reducing the essence of written batik itself. The method used is a literature study. This study aims to describe natural materials that can be used as color barriers, determine the results and quality of batik motifs produced from natural color barriers, and determine the process and results of batik coloring on natural color barriers. The natural ingredients explored are cassava peel and canna starch. The batik motifs produced by the two barriers depend on the drying time, the thickness of the paste application and the applicator used. In the use of natural cassava peel ingredients, the color barrier can block the color well when using a triangular plastic applicator because the quality obtained is good, namely the lines are firm and clear. Meanwhile, when using natural canna starch, the color barrier can block the color well when using the vinegar bottle applicator because the results of the imitation batik motifs produced are neat, even, and firm. The natural ingredients for cassava peel are dylon and wantex dyes, while the canna starch is used for napthol dyes.