Morphological, mechanical and thermal properties of cyanate ester/benzoxazine resin composites reinforced by silane treated natural hemp fibers

This present study deals with the reinforcement of thermosetting resin blends composed of cyanate ester (CE) and benzoxazine (BOZ) resins with natural hemp fibers (NHFs). These NHFs were initially treated by using a silane coupling agent (SCA) in order to chiefly enhance their distributions as well as adhesions within the CE/BOZ resin matrix, then incorporated with various weight amounts ranging from 5 wt% to 20 wt% with a regular interval of 5 wt%. The obtained results showed that at the maximum treated fiber loading (20 wt%), distinctive enhancements in the mechanical properties in terms of flexural strength and microhardness were obtained. Besides, the thermal stability and glass transition temperature (Tg) were appreciably enhanced and were higher than those of the pure CE/BOZ resin properties. With respect to the astonishing properties of the NHFs, these enhancements could be possibly due to the good dispersion and adhesion of the treated NHFs inside the CE/BOZ resin achieved upon using the SCA. Therefore, we believe herein that these renewable and cheap NHFs have considerable potential to be used as reinfocer materials for CE/BOZ resin composites to be used in various industrial sectors.