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Journal ArticleDOI

Biofibres, biodegradable polymers and biocomposites: An overview

TL;DR: The structural aspects and properties of several biofibers and biodegradable polymers, recent developments of different biofiber and biocomposites are discussed in this paper.
Abstract: Recently the critical discussion about the preservation of natural resources and recycling has led to the renewed interest concerning biomaterials with the focus on renewable raw materials. Because of increasing environmental consciousness and demands of legislative authorities, use and removal of traditional composite structures, usually made of glass, carbon or aramid fibers being reinforced with epoxy, unsaturated polyester, or phenolics, are considered critically. Recent advances in natural fiber development, genetic engineering and composite science offer significant opportunities for improved materials from renewable resources with enhanced support for global sustainability. The important feature of composite materials is that they can be designed and tailored to meet different requirements. Since natural fibers are cheap and biodegradable, the biodegradable composites from biofibers and biodegradable polymers will render a contribution in the 21st century due to serious environmental problem. Biodegradable polymers have offered scientists a possible solution to waste-disposal problems associated with traditional petroleum-derived plastics. For scientists the real challenge lies in finding applications which would consume sufficiently large quantities of these materials to lead price reduction, allowing biodegradable polymers to compete economically in the market. Today's much better performance of traditional plastics are the outcome of continued RD however the existing biodegradable polymers came to public only few years back. Prices of biodegradable polymers can be reduced on mass scale production; and such mass scale production will be feasible through constant R&D efforts of scientists to improve the performance of biodegradable plastics. Manufacture of biodegradable composites from such biodegradable plastics will enhance the demand of such materials. The structural aspects and properties of several biofibers and biodegradable polymers, recent developments of different biodegradable polymers and biocomposites are discussed in this review article. Collaborative R&D efforts among material scientists and engineers as well as intensive co-operation and co-ordination among industries, research institutions and government are essential to find various commercial applications of biocomposites even beyond to our imagination.
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Challenges in scaffold fabrication for tissue engineering such as biomolecules incorporation, surface functionalization and 3D scaffold characterization are discussed, giving possible solution strategies.

3,505 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A comprehensive review of literature on bio-fiber reinforced composites is presented in this paper, where the overall characteristics of reinforcing fibers used in biocomposites, including source, type, structure, composition, as well as mechanical properties, are reviewed.

3,074 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a review summarizes progress in nanocellulose preparation with a particular focus on microfibrillated cellulose and also discusses recent developments in bio-nanocomposite fabrication based on nanocells.
Abstract: Due to their abundance, high strength and stiffness, low weight and biodegradability, nano-scale cellulose fiber materials (e.g., microfibrillated cellulose and bacterial cellulose) serve as promising candidates for bio-nanocomposite production. Such new high-value materials are the subject of continuing research and are commercially interesting in terms of new products from the pulp and paper industry and the agricultural sector. Cellulose nanofibers can be extracted from various plant sources and, although the mechanical separation of plant fibers into smaller elementary constituents has typically required high energy input, chemical and/or enzymatic fiber pre-treatments have been developed to overcome this problem. A challenge associated with using nanocellulose in composites is the lack of compatibility with hydrophobic polymers and various chemical modification methods have been explored in order to address this hurdle. This review summarizes progress in nanocellulose preparation with a particular focus on microfibrillated cellulose and also discusses recent developments in bio-nanocomposite fabrication based on nanocellulose.

2,546 citations


Cites background from "Biofibres, biodegradable polymers a..."

  • ...2005), which is higher than that generally recorded for macro-scale natural fibers (Mohanty et al. 2000) and is of the same order as the elastic modulus of glass fibers (70 GPa; Saheb and Jog 1999; Juntaro et al....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, structural, thermal, crystallization, and rheological properties of PLA are reviewed in relation to its converting processes, including extrusion, injection molding, injection stretch blow molding and casting.

2,293 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An overview of recent progress in the area of cellulose nanofibre-based nanocomposites is given in this article, with particular emphasis on applications, such as reinforced adhesives, to make optically transparent paper for electronic displays, to create DNA-hybrid materials, to generate hierarchical composites and for use in foams, aerogels and starch nanocom composites.
Abstract: This paper provides an overview of recent progress made in the area of cellulose nanofibre-based nanocomposites. An introduction into the methods used to isolate cellulose nanofibres (nanowhiskers, nanofibrils) is given, with details of their structure. Following this, the article is split into sections dealing with processing and characterisation of cellulose nanocomposites and new developments in the area, with particular emphasis on applications. The types of cellulose nanofibres covered are those extracted from plants by acid hydrolysis (nanowhiskers), mechanical treatment and those that occur naturally (tunicate nanowhiskers) or under culturing conditions (bacterial cellulose nanofibrils). Research highlighted in the article are the use of cellulose nanowhiskers for shape memory nanocomposites, analysis of the interfacial properties of cellulose nanowhisker and nanofibril-based composites using Raman spectroscopy, switchable interfaces that mimic sea cucumbers, polymerisation from the surface of cellulose nanowhiskers by atom transfer radical polymerisation and ring opening polymerisation, and methods to analyse the dispersion of nanowhiskers. The applications and new advances covered in this review are the use of cellulose nanofibres to reinforce adhesives, to make optically transparent paper for electronic displays, to create DNA-hybrid materials, to generate hierarchical composites and for use in foams, aerogels and starch nanocomposites and the use of all-cellulose nanocomposites for enhanced coupling between matrix and fibre. A comprehensive coverage of the literature is given and some suggestions on where the field is likely to advance in the future are discussed.

2,214 citations