Effects of Injection Molding on Linum usitatissimum Fiber Polyvinyl Chloride Composites for Automotive Underbody Shields and Floor Trays

The automotive sector’s growing focus on sustainability has been spurred to investigate the creation of sustainable resources for different parts, emphasizing enhancing efficiency and minimizing environmental harm. For use in automobile flooring trays and underbody shields, this study examines the impact of injection molding on composite materials made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and Linum usitatissimum (flax) fibers. As processed organic fiber content was increased, the bending and tensile rigidity initially witnessed an upsurge, peaking at a specific fiber loading. At this optimal loading, the composite exhibited tensile strength, flexural strength, and elastic modulus values of 41.26 MPa, 52.32 MPa, and 2.65 GPa, respectively. Given their deformation resistance and impact absorption attributes, the mechanical properties recorded suggest that such composites can be efficiently utilized for automotive underbody shields and floor trays. The inherent structure of the flax fiber within the PVC matrix constrains molecular movement, leading to superior deformation resistance that enhances impact force absorption. This characteristic is also responsible for the observed decline in impact strength as fiber content increases. The investigation’s results add to the expanding literature on environmentally friendly materials in automobile manufacturing and offer important new information for designing and producing floor trays and underbody shields made of PVC composites with Linum usitatissimum fiber.