Estimating the Tensile Strength Properties of Plantain Fiber Ash Particulate and Silumin using Box-Behnken Design.
This study utilizes response surface methodology (RSM) to estimate the engineeringparameters of PFAP/silumin composites. The tensile strengths of the developed compositeswere evaluated using a Box-Behnken design (BBD), considering factors such as weightfraction, particle size, soaking time, plantain fiber ash particulate concentration, andsilumin. The results indicate that the weight fraction of fibers has the greatest influence ontensile strength, with interaction effects being more significant than linear and quadraticeffects. The predicted tensile strengths of the PFAP/silumin composites, obtained throughRSM, closely matched the experimental values, validating the reliability of the software. Therange of predicted tensile strengths was found to be 44.66 MPa to 64.05 MPa, while theobtained experimental values ranged from 40.31 MPa to 75.98 MPa. This study demonstratesthe effectiveness of the BBD method in quickly obtaining optimum values of tensile strengthfor PFAP/silumin composites. Furthermore, this research highlights the promising potentialof utilizing waste materials in the automotive industry, particularly in East Africa.