Effect of pretreatment with detergent on mechanical properties of photocured coir (<i>Cocos nucifera</i>) fiber with ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate

Abstract Coir fibers were treated with ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) mixed with methanol (MeOH) under UV radiation. A series of solutions of different concentrations of EGDMA in methanol along with a photoinitator, Irgacure‐500 (mixture of 1‐hydroxylcyclohexylphenylketone and benzophenonc), were prepared. Monomer concentration, soaking time, and radiation intensity were optimized in terms of polymer loading (PL) and mechanical properties. EGDMA (50%), 5 min soaking time at the 4th pass of radiation, produced higher PL and tensile strength (TS), and the values of PL is 17% and TS is 1.3 times of the nontreated one. Then, coir fiber was pretreated with detergent and then treated with the optimized monomer formulation, which exhibited a higher PL of 69% and produced TS of the…