Tribo-mechanical behavior of pectin-filled aloe vera fiber–reinforced polyester composites

Gnanasekaran Muthusamy; Jeyaprakasam Sellappan; Karthick Rasu; Vigneshkumar Murugesan

doi:10.1515/mt-2025-0117

Article

Tribo-mechanical behavior of pectin-filled aloe vera fiber–reinforced polyester composites

Gnanasekaran Muthusamy
Gnanasekaran Muthusamy is an Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering at K.·S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Tiruchengode, Tamilnadu, India. His research focuses on composite materials and welding.
, Jeyaprakasam Sellappan
Jeyaprakasam Sellappan is an Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering at K.·S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Tiruchengode, Tamilnadu, India. His research focuses on composite materials.
, Karthick Rasu
Karthick Rasu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Velammal College of Engineering and Technology, Madurai, India. His research focuses on characterization and machining of natural fiber–reinforced polymer composites.
and Vigneshkumar Murugesan
Vigneshkumar Murugesan is an Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering at Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore, India. His researches focus on manufacturing processes, numerical analysis, and welding.

Published/Copyright: August 12, 2025

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From the journal Materials Testing Volume 67 Issue 9

Abstract

Natural fiber–reinforced composites offer sustainability benefits but face challenges such as high water absorption and limited wear resistance. To address this, pectin was incorporated into aloe vera fiber–reinforced polyester composites, and its effects on mechanical strength, wear resistance, water absorption, and thermal stability were evaluated. Composites were prepared with varying pectin concentrations: AF0 (pectin-free), PA1 (1 % pectin), PA3 (3 % pectin), PA5 (5 % pectin), and PA7 (7 % pectin). Results showed that PA3 exhibited the highest mechanical properties, with a hardness of 81, impact strength of 3.87 J, flexural strength of 60.31 MPa, and tensile strength of 21.87 MPa, while water absorption decreased to 8.12 %. Wear resistance was also highest in PA3, with the lowest wear loss under applied loads of 10 N, 15 N, and 20 N. However, beyond PA3, mechanical properties and wear resistance declined due to matrix embrittlement. Thermal analysis indicated similar degradation trends across compositions, with about 20 % weight loss between 50 °C and 250 °C and 60 % loss between 250 °C and 400 °C, confirming that pectin had minimal impact on thermal stability. These findings suggest that incorporating 3 % pectin (PA3) optimizes composite performance, making it a promising approach for enhancing the durability of natural fiber–reinforced composites.

Keywords: aloe vera fiber; pectin; polyester; mechanical properties; wear resistance

Corresponding author: Gnanasekaran Muthusamy, Mechanical Engineering, K.S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Tiruchengode, India, E-mail: mgnanasksr@gmail.com

About the authors

Gnanasekaran Muthusamy

Gnanasekaran Muthusamy is an Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering at K.·S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Tiruchengode, Tamilnadu, India. His research focuses on composite materials and welding.

Jeyaprakasam Sellappan

Jeyaprakasam Sellappan is an Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering at K.·S. Rangasamy College of Technology, Tiruchengode, Tamilnadu, India. His research focuses on composite materials.

Karthick Rasu

Karthick Rasu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Velammal College of Engineering and Technology, Madurai, India. His research focuses on characterization and machining of natural fiber–reinforced polymer composites.

Vigneshkumar Murugesan

Vigneshkumar Murugesan is an Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering at Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore, India. His researches focus on manufacturing processes, numerical analysis, and welding.

Research ethics: The author declares no conflicts of interest. This article does not contain any studies involving animals or human participants performed by the author.
Informed consent: Not applicable.
Author contributions: All the authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this submitted manuscript and approved submission.
Use of Large Language Models, AI and Machine Learning Tools: None declared.
Conflict of interest: The authors declare that there are no financial or commercial conflicts of interest.
Research funding: None declared.
Data availability: The raw data can be obtained on request from the corresponding author.

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Published Online: 2025-08-12

Published in Print: 2025-09-25

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/mt-2025-0117

Keywords for this article

aloe vera fiber; pectin; polyester; mechanical properties; wear resistance