Investigation of the Mechanical Behavior of the Oil Shale Ash Filled Chlorinated Polyvinyl Chloride Composite Material

The effect of the oil shale ash (OSA) addition on the impact, tensile, flexural, water uptake, and morphological behavior of the chlorinated polyvinylchloride (CPVC) was investigated. Adding OSA filler to CPVC matrix yielded a greater impact strength of 498 kJ/m2 . While the tensile stress at yield and at break increased by an average of 50% and 100%, respectively, the tensile strain at yield and at break increased by an average of 20% and 10%, sequentially. The tensile and flexural modulus of OSA/CPVC increased by 16% and 65%, respectively. The results of this work demonstrated that the OSA could be used as a reinforcement material for the CPVC polymer, providing superior mechanical properties with respect to the neat polymer, as long as an appropriate OSA filler proportion, 5% - 15-%, is included into the CPVC polymer composite. Water absorption was increased with the increase of the OSA filler content. Scanning electron microscopy microphotographs evidenced the improvement in the mechanical behavior of the OSA/CPVC polymer composite by low level of both filler pullout and voids.