Polyester-Based Composites Reinforced with Rice Husk Fillers

Abstract

Natural fibres from agricultural wastes are the most significant in the polymer manufacturing industry due to various benefits, such as environmentally friendly, low cost and lightweight, which are associated with their usage. Rice husk is obtained from rice grains. As one of the useful types of natural fibres, rice husk could be utilized as filler in various polyester composite materials. This chapter aims at describing the importance of rice husk-filled polyester matrices. Based on the available information emanating from research endeavours, applications of rice husk-filled composites in the construction, automobile, furniture, biomedical industries, etc., are possible due to their low cost and lightweight characteristics, associated with their major dynamic forces. However, the major disadvantage of rice husk filler is its poor compatibility with the host matrices. To address this disadvantage, additional research on the necessary chemical and physical treatments in order to enhance the interfacial adhesion between the polyester matrices is highly desirable in order to determine the final composite characteristics.