A comparative study on the influence of different lignocellulosic fillers on the dynamic mechanical and erosion wear performance of areca fiber reinforced bio-based epoxy composites utilizing Taguchi and TLBO methods

Lignocellulosic biomass represents a valuable renewable resource with strong potential for use as sustainable reinforcement. The work presented here utilizes two lignocellulosic materials, namely wood apple shell and pine cone, in powder form, as reinforcements in areca sheath reinforced bio-based epoxy composites. The dynamic mechanical analysis of the composites was conducted from room temperature to 150°C, and the storage (2.48 GPa) and loss modulus (0.4 GPa) were highest for W15 composites in the glass transition region. The composites without filler had the highest damping factor (tan δ) of 0.47. TGA revealed that the thermal stability of the composites was enhanced by the introduction of both fillers. The erosion wear experiment was conducted based on the Taguchi design of experiments, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) identified erodent velocity as the most significant factor. The wear rate optimization was conducted using the desirability approach, and marginal error of 3.53% and 5.53% was observed between the predicted and experimental wear rate values for wood apple and pine cone composites, which validated the robustness of the desirability model. Following this, a metaheuristic approach called Teaching Learning Based Optimization (TLBO) predicted the minimum erosion rate for both sets of composites, beyond the tested experimental array, at 5 wt.% filler loading, 90° of impingement angle, and erodent velocity of 45 m/s. Confirmation experiments were performed at these TLBO suggested conditions, and the erosion rate was found to be the lowest of all for both sets of composites, which highlighted the efficacy of applying the TLBO method in deducing the optimum conditions for minimum wear rate. The wear track and depth were evaluated using a 3D optical profilometer. The composites developed in this work can be used in lighter load applications, such as in semi-permanent structures in desert areas.