SINOPSIS

Jute, agel leaf, and glass fiber were used in this research as a composite reinforcer. Unsaturated polyester was used as a matrix material and methyl ethyl ketone peroxide as a curing initiator. Firstly, all fibers were alkali-treated in 4% NaOH solution for 1 h, and then dried. After that, fibers were silane-treated in a 0%, 5%, and 10% silane solution and then dried overnight. Every composite was enhanced with seven layers of woven fibers in seven different stacking sequences. Tensile, flexural, and impact tests were used to testify the mechanical properties of the composite. FTIR and SEM analyses were done to analyze the effectiveness of silane treatment. It is shown that the 0%, 5%, and 10% silane treatment of the alkalized-pure agel leaf fiber-reinforced composite decreases its specific tensile strength. On the other hand, the silane treatment of alkalized jute and glass fiber can improve the specific tensile strength, due to the effective reaction between silane and hydroxyl groups on the fiber surface. Placing glass fiber at the outermost layer from the neutral axis gives significant improvement in the specific flexural properties. For the specific impact strength, stacking sequences of reinforcement does not give any significant improvement. Gradual improvement of the composite specific impact strength is more likely caused by the increase in the value of glass fiber content. At chemical bonding perspective, FTIR and SEM analyses show that silane treatment has a positive effect in enhancing the fiber−resin interaction.