Abstract
This study investigates the potential of Water Hyacinth Fiber Reinforced Composites (WHFRC) as lightweight materials for ship interior applications. Water hyacinth, an abundant aquatic weed found in Nigerian inland waterways, was considered due to its low cost, availability, and environmental advantages. The research focused on extracting fiber from water hyacinth petioles through water retting, followed by fabrication of composite samples using epoxy resin and a cashew-nut shell liquid-based hardener. Materials used included water hyacinth fibers as reinforcement. Equipment utilized comprised an oven dryer for heat treatment, analytical weighing balance for mass measurements, universal testing machine for tensile and flexural strength analysis, and water absorption apparatus for evaluating hydrophilicity. The harvested water hyacinth was dried at ambient temperature to remove excess water for 14days, sample representative was taken to the for further heating using heat furnace. It was weighed before being heated at 100°c and then brought out weighing to determine moisture loss. This was done at 200°c, 300°c and 600°c(this is where carbonization takes place). At 300°c the specimen was taken for water absorption test for 24hours Tests carried out included tensile, thermal stability, water absorption, and flexural strength. Results showed that water hyacinth fiber composites exhibited low tensile strength, poor thermal stability, and extremely highwater absorption (above 500%), leading to failure in flexural strength tests. These results indicate that water hyacinth fibers are unsuitable for direct use in marine composite applications, especially for ship interior panels exposed to moisture and temperature variations. The study concludes that although WHFRCs are environmentally friendly, their high hydrophilicity and weak bonding characteristics limit their application in the marine sector unless surface treatment or hybridization with stronger fibers is applied
