A potential natural energy absorption material – Coconut mesocarp: Part A: Experimental investigations on mechanical properties

Published Date
September 2016, Vol.115:564–573, doi:10.1016/j.ijmecsci.2016.07.017

Author 

• Xuan Truong Nguyen ^a,b,c
• Shujuan Hou ^a,b,,
• Taiqu Liu ^a,b
• Xu Han ^a,b,,

• aState Key Laboratory of Advanced Design and Manufacturing for Vehicle Body, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan 410082, PR China
• bCollege of Mechanical and Vehicle Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan 410082, PR China
• cOffice of Science and Technology Administration, Hanoi University of Industry, North Tuliem District, Hanoi, SR Vietnam

Received 22 April 2016. Revised 1 July 2016. Accepted 16 July 2016. Available online 18 July 2016

Highlights

• Specimens with densities from 90 to 220 kg/m³ were quasi-statically compressed in three directions.
• •
  The coconut mesocarp material performs an obvious energy-absorption characteristic of porous materials in the grain (coir fiber) direction.
• •
  The digital microscopy photos were taken to illustrate the composition of coconut mesocarp.
• •
  The Young's modulus and Poison's Ratios of mesocarp was computed based on experimental datum.

Abstract

The energy-absorption abilities and mechanical properties of mesocarp material were firstly studied. Specimens with varying densities ranging from 90 to 220 kg/m³ were quasi-static compressed in the radial, tangential and grain (coir fiber) direction with a loading speed of 2 mm per minute. The digital microscopy photos were taken to illustrate composition of coconut mesocarp. The great discovery is that coconut mesocarp shows different mechanical characteristics in three different directions, and that the coconut mesocarp material performs an obvious energy-absorption characteristic of porous materials in the grain direction. In the tangential and radial direction, it performs a similar metal characteristic. The Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio of mesocarp was predicted and computed based on experimental datum. The Young's modulus in the grain direction is highest among three directions. The specific energy absorption of mesocarp was also computed and the result shows that mesocarp material is a potential natural energy absorption material, especially in the grain direction.

Keyword 

Coconut

Mesocarp

Energy-absorption

Porous material

Crashworthiness

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Nomenclature

SEA

specific energy absorption

E_j

energy absorption

F

compressive force (load)

l/l₀

compressed length

m_i

quantity of a single specimen

F

compress force

F_max

peak force

σ

stress

ϵ

strain

ρ

density

µ

Poisson's ratio

E, E_x, E_y, E_z

Young's modulus

L

original length of specimen in the compression direction

ΔL

the length variation

A

cross-sectional area of the specimen perpendicular to the compression direction

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  Corresponding authors at: College of Mechanical and Vehicle Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, Hunan 410082, PR China.

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