Fabrication And Strength Analysis Of Small Boat Hull Using Kapok And Fiberglass Reinforced Polyester Hybrid Composite

Abstract

This project presents the study of fabrication and strength analysis of small hybrid composite boat hull using kapok and fiberglass reinforced polyester. Recent studies showed that natural fiber such as kapok fiber has been found to have a great potential to be used as fiber reinforcement in polymer matrix composites. The boat hull is made of layers of kapok fibers and a layer of woven roving fiberglass. The composites were fabricated using a hand laminating technique. The tensile test and flexure test was carried out in accordance to ASTM D638 and ASTM D790 standard respectively. This research investigates the method selection for fabrication of small boat. The results of the experiment showed that the tensile strength is of an acceptable value for a boat hull.