Nur Syamsih Amalia, S. Syamsidar, Abdul Haris, Subaer
This research was conducted to develop and characterize hybrid composite fly ash based geopolymers with pineapple leaf fibers (PLF) as aggregate. The physico-mechanic properties of pineapple fibers were observed based on time immersion of the fibers in 0.1M NaOH solution. The time immersion was varied from 0, 15, 30, 45, and 60 minutes. Geopolymers was synthesized through alkali activated class-C fly ash and then mixed with 0.2 g of fibers each from different time of immersion. The mixture was poured into a glass mold and cured at 60°C for 2 hours. The strength of fibers as a function of time immersion was observed by using tensile strength measurement. The three point bending method was used to measure the flexural strength of the resulting composites. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) coupled with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) was used to examine the morphology and the chemical composition of the starting and the resulting materials. Heat resistance measurement was performed to investigate the ability of the composite to withstand high temperature application. The research results showed that pineapple leaf fibers offer high potential to be used as reinforcement or light aggregate in geopolymers technology. © 2018 Author(s).
Geopolymers and Green Materials Group, Physics Department, FMIPA, Universitas Negeri, Makassar, Indonesia
