Mechanical Behavior of Polyester and Sisal Fibers

In this work, composite materials of polyester matrix reinforced by short sisal fibers, were produced using the minimum stages of technology processing in the productive step, with views to produce a composite material technically easy to produce. The polyester matrix used was a pre-accelerated tereftalic with cobalt naftenat and cured at room temperature with methyl ethyl ketone peroxide (MEK) in different proportions in relation to the resin, 0.33%, 1.66%, 3.33% and 5.00% by volume in order to evaluate the influence on mechanical properties. The sisal fibers were manually cut in lengths of 5, 10 and 15 mm and used in the way purchased and surface untreated. Mechanical properties were evaluated by tests of traction and Charpy impact. The results showed that the increase in the length of the sisal fiber, tensile strength and impact of composites has been increased, reaching the composite of sisal fibers, 15 mm, the best performance with the specimen series tested.