The Effect of Sodium Hydroxide and Oxalic Acid Treatments on Water Absorption, Thickness Swelling, and Hardness of Polyester/Ramie Fiber Composites

Abstract:

Environmental advantages and remarkable performance can be achieved by using ramie fibers, which demonstrates the enormous potential in fiber reinforced composites. A study was conducted to investigate the effects of chemical treatment on water absorption, thickness swelling, and hardness behavior of polyester/ramie composites. Natural fibers that were not treated or treated were prepared in unidirectional orientation, and the vacuum infusion technique was used to manufacture the composites. Comparing composites treated with both oxalic acid and alkali to untreated ramie fibers, the composites resistance to water absorption was increased by 94.68%. The evaluation of thickness swelling also revealed that the combination treatment exhibited the lowest percentage of dimension expansion. The thickness swelling of the polyester/ramie composite was reduced by 32.58% as a result of the ramie fibers being immersed in subsequent alkali and oxalic acid solutions. The findings of the Shore D Hardness test showed that after the samples were soaked for 312 hours, there was a decrease in hardness, where the smallest found in the treated samples.

• Periodical: Solid State Phenomena (Volume 372)
• Pages: 33-39
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/p-Cj3XIl
• Online since: July 2025
• Authors: Henny Pratiwi, Kusmono Kusmono*, Muhammad Waziz Wildan
• Keywords: Oxalic Acid, Polyester, Ramie Fiber, Swelling, Water Absorption

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