A non-woven waste cellulosic fibers–iron shavings abrasive composite: synthesis, characterization, and evaluation of its wear mechanism

Iron scrap is one of the substances rejected in large quantities of by-products from the steel industrial sector. In this work, waste cellulosic fibers and iron shavings were used as reinforcement and abrasive particles, respectively. Two methods of the synthesis of the hybrid composites were applied namely spraying and coating. Different analytical techniques of characterization, i.e., Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA/DTG), and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), were used to analyze the studied samples. The morphology of the abrasives displayed the presence of spherical grains on the surface with a diameter ranging from 100 to 200 µm. In the spraying process, the surface was characterized by the presence of hollows, bumps, and small empty areas. For the coating process, the fibers of the reinforcement and some drops of resins were visible on the surface of the abrasives. The EDX analysis suggested that the abrading action of the composite surface might be done by tearing off the iron grains. The properties of the matrices, process considered, size of the grains, and their distribution were found to be the principal parameters governing the abrasive process. As the particle size increases, the surface becomes rougher, allowing for more scraping of the materials surfaces.