Formulation of dielectric composite material based on ananas comosus waste and its application towards microwave engineering Azahani Natasha Binti Azman

Faculty of Electrical & Electronics Engineering Technology

Thesis (Master of Science) -- Universiti Malaysia Pahang – 2024

Includes bibliographical references

In contemporary electronic applications such as telecommunications, computing, control systems, and others, dielectric materials play a crucial role, with permittivity and loss tangent being vital properties. Dielectric materials are used in structures like capacitors, microstrip antennas, and coaxial cables. Utilizing dielectric materials derived from waste offers a promising avenue for reducing pollution and conserving resources. Pineapples, in particular, generate approximately 75% waste, each possessing unique characteristics. This study explores the potential utilization of pineapple leaves to develop new fibers or raw materials for antenna applications. The primary objective is to analyze key factors in preparing dielectric materials from pineapple plantation waste, optimize the fabrication process of pineapple plantation waste, and evaluate microwave application performance with a reflection coefficient less than -10 dB. This analysis employs rapid two level factorial analysis, optimization analysis, and one factor at a time analysis to identify significant factors during preparation. The process involves quick determination of the optimum variable factor, leading to swift analysis. Dielectric material preparation includes chemical treatment, sample fabrication, and sample characterization. Permittivity measurement at 5 GHz is conducted using a G-band rectangular waveguide. Factors contributing to the process include the ratio of pineapple leaves to distilled water, boiling time, heated and nonheated processes, and the mass of pineapple leaves powder. The mass of pineapple leaves powder, specifically 15 g, emerges as the most significant factor in achieving a high permittivity value of 5.03 at 5 GHz frequency. Additionally, the design of a microstrip patch antenna using a pineapple leaves substrate aims to achieve a -10 dB reflection coefficient with higher dielectric permittivity at 5 GHz frequency. The antenna design undergoes simulation using CST software, resulting in a -32.76 dB reflection coefficient, efficiently converting more than 90% of the input power into antenna radiation. The microstrip patch antenna is fabricated and characterized to validate the concept. The successful implementation of the pineapple leaves development process in fabricating the antenna not only validates high dielectric permittivity values but also demonstrates the practical applicability of pineapple leavesbased materials in electronic applications. This highlights the potential of sustainable and eco-friendly materials derived from agricultural waste in contributing to advancements in technology and innovation.