ASSESSMENT OF THE INFLUENCE OF PERIWINKLE SHELLPOWDER ON SOME MECHANICAL AND DIELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF EPOXY RESIN
ASSESSMENT OF THE INFLUENCE OF PERIWINKLE SHELLPOWDER ON SOME MECHANICAL AND DIELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF EPOXY RESIN
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Date
2021-01
Authors
SADIQ, Abdulrahman
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Abstract
Composite insulators with metal oxides are widely used in overhead transmission. While
synthesized metal oxides are often used in polymer composites, efforts are on to develop metal
oxide micro/nanoparticles from naturally occurring materials. The consumption of periwinkles, a
species of small edible sea snail produces residual shells that aredisposed of. The shell, a natural
ceramics containing several metal oxides is used in material application such as concrete. This
research report the characteristics of a powder produced from the periwinkleshell (PWS) and its
effect on the mechanical and dielectric behaviour of epoxy-based polymer composite. The sizes
of the particles of the prepared shell fine powder were estimated using the Scanning Electron
Microscopy and the image revealed that the sizes of the PWS powder range from 4.39 to 100μm.
The chemical composition, thermal conductivity, anddielectric properties were studied using the
X-ray Fluorescence (XRF), Thermal conductivity setup, and programmable LCR Bridge
respectively. Polymer composite was produced from epoxy resin and the prepared PWS as filler
with a composition ranging from 0.5 – 1%. The dielectric and mechanical properties of the
produced epoxy composite samples were studied using the programmable LCR Bridge,
Monsanto tensometer, Vickers harder tester, and Charpy impact testing machine. The XRF result
revealed a powder with over 80% CaO. The thermal and electrical conducting properties of the
powder were superior compared with that of pure CaO. The dielectric constant and the electrical
conductivity of the powder were determined to be 12.15 and 1.6876 × 10-8 S/m respectively, at
the frequency of 200 Hz. Improved properties of epoxy composites were achieved using PWS as
reinforcement up to a maximum of 1wt%. The dispersion of the powder up to 1wt% results in a
decrease in the dielectric loss and an increase in the dielectric constant of the epoxy polymer.
The mechanical properties have optimum improvement of up to 68% with the dispersion of
0.9wt% of PWS into the epoxy polymer. Periwinkle shell powder, if properly processed to micro
and even nano-sized particles, can be good candidate filler in polymer composites. The waste
periwinkle shell can serve as a cheap resource to produce low-cost polymer composite with
improved insulation properties for use in high voltage application and encapsulation power
electronic modules.
Description
A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES,
AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY ZARIA,
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF
MASTER OF SCIENCE (M.Sc.) DEGREE IN PHYSICS
DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS,
FACULTY OF PHYSICAL SCIENCES,
AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY,
ZARIA, NIGERIA