Effect of chitosan filler on the thermal and viscoelasticity properties of bio-epoxy/date palm fiber composites

The present study focuses on the efficacy of incorporating a combination of date palm fibres (DP) and chitosan (CTS) filler in bio-epoxy composites for engineering applications. In this research work, chitosan serves as bio-filler to enhance the viscoelasticity and thermal properties of composites made from bio-epoxy/date palm fiber through DMA and thermogravimetry analysis. Four different amounts of chitosan powder (5,10,15,20%wt) were incorporated into a bio-epoxy/date palm fiber composite. A bio-epoxy/date palm fiber composite without chitosan filler was made for comparison purposes. With the addition of chitosan bio-filler, the storage modulus of the bioepoxy/date palm fiber composite increased, with the exception of composite containing 5% CTS. Comparing 20% chitosan filler to without chitosan composite, the damping factor (Tan delta) increases from 0.34 to 0.39. Thermogravimetric analysis performed on composites showed that the presence of chitosan influences the thermal properties of the composites. The composite containing 20% CTS demonstrated the greatest improvement in thermal stability. These DMA and TGA results validate the positive thermal and viscoelastic properties of chitosan-incorporated bioepoxy/date palm fibre composites. Based on the findings, bio-epoxy/date palm fiber with chitosan filled can be used in a variety of lightweight engineering applications with great success.