Natural fibre composites: processing, fabrication and applications

TLDR: In this paper, the authors contextualize the scenario of natural fibres composites evaluating the development of technologies that allow the processing and the production of high-performance environment-friendly materials.

Abstract: Composite emerged as a new material class that allows synergic combining of different materials’ properties to obtain enhancement in the desired property for an application. Among the available options to compose it, natural fibres have a significant advantages in terms of high specific properties (property to density ratio), which can be compared to glass fibres. Other advantages are the excellent availability of natural sources or residues. They have a low cost associated with their production and they are biodegradable, which gives the natural fibres composites a sustainability aspect. However, limitations in fibre’s thermal stability and chemical surface stability will influence their applications. The processing depends on each matrix that will be applied in the composite: ceramic or polymeric. The modification of the fibre surface to improve its interaction with the matrix will produce high-performance composites with applications in different industrial sectors such as automotive, aeronautics, construction, medicine and several others. This chapter aims to contextualize the scenario of natural fibres composites evaluating the development of technologies that allow the processing and the production of high-performance environment-friendly materials.