Rice husk ash enhances mechanical properties

Rice husk ash enhances mechanical properties Source: Photoflex AG

Mahboobeh Azadi Mohammad Ebrahim Bahrololoom and Fatemeh Heidari from Shiraz University in Iran chose rice husk ash (RHA) —a carbon neutral waste product that is an abundant source of silica—was as an innovative filler for epoxy paint. They investigated the influence of the RHA on different mechanical properties of the cured coatings (wear, hardness, and elongation). Wear tests in pin-on-disc mode were carried out and followed by scanning electron microscopic observations to determine the wear mechanism for specimens with different values of carbon and silica according to their different colors as fillers for epoxy paint. Pencil hardness tests and bending tests were performed according to ASTM D3363 and ASTM D522 standards, respectively. Adding RHA (heat treated at 700°C) at two levels—10 and 20 % weight fraction—to the unfilled epoxy paint increased the wear resistance, scratch resistance, and elongation of the filled coating compared to the unfilled epoxy coating. Read more in the Journall of Coatings Technology and Research, Vol. 8, Number 1, pp 117-123.