Showing papers on "Natural fiber published in 2014"

Progress Report on Natural Fiber Reinforced Composites

Abstract: This century has witnessed remarkable achievements in green technology in material science through the development of natural fiber reinforced composites. The development of high-performance engineering products made from natural resources is increasing worldwide day by day. There is increasing interest in materials demonstrating efficient use of renewable resources. Nowadays, more than ever, companies are faced with opportunities and choices in material innovations. Due to the challenges of petroleum-based products and the need to find renewable solutions, more and more companies are looking at natural fiber composite materials. The primary driving forces for new bio-composite materials are the cost of natural fibers (currently priced at one-third of the cost of glass fiber or less), weight reduction (these fibers are half the weight of glass fiber), recycling (natural fiber composites are easier to recycle) and the desire for green products. This Review provides an overview of natural fiber reinfocred composites focusing on natural fiber types and sources, processing methods, modification of fibers, matrices (petrochemical and renewable), and their mechanical performance. It also focuses on future research, recent developments and applications and concludes with key issues that need to be resolved. This article critically summarizes the essential findings of the mostly readily utilized reinforced natural fibers in polymeric composite materials and their performance from 2000 to 2013.

Hybrid fiber reinforced polymer composites – a review

Abstract: The polymer matrix composites have been widely used for many applications. These are light in weight and easy for manufacturing. The hybrid fiber reinforced composites have been prepared to enhance the mechanical, thermal, damping properties compared to single-fiber reinforced composites. The fiber reinforced hybrid composites consist of two or more fiber in a matrix system. The different fibers were reinforced with suitable matrix for preparing the hybrid composites using various manufacturing methodology. The hybrid composites are used for many application and replacing wood, wood fiber composites and conventional materials. The mechanical properties (tensile, flexural and impact), dynamic, tribological and water absorption properties of natural fiber reinforced hybrid polymer composites and natural/synthetic fiber reinforced hybrid polymer composites were reported.

Fabrication and characterization of fully biodegradable natural fiber-reinforced poly(lactic acid) composites

Abstract: Polymer composites were fabricated with poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and cellulosic natural fibers combining the wet-laid fiber sheet forming method with the film stacking composite-making process. The natural fibers studied included hardwood high yield pulp, softwood high yield pulp, and bleached kraft softwood pulp fibers. Composite mechanical and thermal properties were characterized. The incorporation of pulp fibers significantly increased the composite storage moduli and elasticity, promoted the cold crystallization and recrystallization of PLA, and dramatically improved composite tensile moduli and strengths. The highest composite tensile strength achieved was 121 MPa, nearly one fold higher than that of the neat PLA. The overall fiber efficiency factors for composite tensile strengths derived from the micromechanics models were found to be much higher than that of conventional random short fiber-reinforced composites, suggesting the fiber–fiber bond also positively contributed to the composites’ strengths.

Review on natural fiber reinforcement polymer composites

Abstract: The natural fiber-reinforced polymer composite is rapidly growing both in terms of their industrial applications and fundamental research. They are renewable, cheap, completely or partially recyclable and biodegradable. These composites are having low density and cost as well as satisfactory mechanical properties make them an attractive due to easy availability and renewability of raw materials. Natural fibers have been proven alternative to synthetic fiber in transportation such as automobiles, railway coaches and aerospace. Other applications include military, building, packaging, consumer products and construction industries for ceiling paneling, partition boards. This paper deals with review of different natural fibers reinforced polymer composite with its manufacturing processes and characterization especially coir and jute fiber.

Processing and Properties of Date Palm Fibers and Its Composites

Abstract: Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) fibers are considered as one of the most available natural fiber types worldwide. Large quantities of date palm biomass wastes are annually accumulated without proper utilization. These quantities are of potential interest to support the industrial sustainability by producing alternative cheap eco-friendly materials. The competitiveness of the date palm fibers in several applications particularly in automotive industrial sectors was illustrated. Date palm fiber can be considered the best regarding several evaluation criteria like specific strength to cost ratio if compared to other fiber types. The effects of using date palm fibers in natural fiber composites with different polymer matrices were demonstrated. Criteria that can affect the proper selection and evaluation of the natural fibers as well as the composites for particular applications were discussed. The benefit of natural fibers’ modifications on physical, mechanical, and other properties were also explored. Selecting the proper date palm fiber reinforcement condition can dramatically enhance its future expectations and widen its usage in different applications.

Activated carbon fiber - the hybrid of carbon fiber and activated carbon

Abstract: From application perspectives in adsorption, activated carbon fiber (ACF) is by far one of the most important carbon nanoporous materials to be considered. It has great advantages over other commercial porous storage materials. Activated carbon fiber (ACF) is a promising microporous material with a fiber shape and well-defined porous structure. In general, produc- tion of ACF can be commercially manufactured from synthetic carbon fiber (CF) with providing an additional activation process. The special characteristics of ACF include high packing density, excellent volumetric capacity, high speed adsorption/desorption and easy handling. The pro- cessing costs of ACF is a combination of fiber processing cost and activation cost which is relatively higher compared other activated carbon. Lately, production of ACF from lower costs precursors have been suggested from researcher by using agricultural wastes in activated carbon (AC) preparation. However, there were not much detail or publicly-available sources of information describing these natural fiber derived ACF, compared to synthetic ACF. The reasons include higher cost of fiber processing and difficulties of process to prepare fiber in desired shape. The background and development of carbon materials and ACF are described. In this section, topics such as raw materials, preparations, advantages and applications of ACFs will be covered.

A Novel Evaluation Tool for Enhancing the Selection of Natural Fibers for Polymeric Composites Based on Fiber Moisture Content Criterion

Abstract: A systematic evaluation tool for natural fibers’ capabilities based on moisture content criterion (MCC) was developed and introduced as a new evaluation method. This MCC evaluation tool is designed to predict the behavior of the available natural fibers regarding distinctive desirable characteristics under the effect of the moisture absorption phenomenon. Here, the capabilities of different natural fiber types commonly used in industry, in addition to date palm fibers, were systematically investigated based on MCC. The results demonstrated that MCC is capable of predicting the relative reduction of fiber performance regarding a particular beneficial property because of the effect of moisture absorption. The strong agreements between the predicted values of MCC and results reported in the literature verify its usefulness as an evaluation tool and demonstrate its added value steps in predicting the relative behavior of fibers with a minimal range of errors compared with experimental measurements. Therefore, MCC is capable of better evaluating natural fibers regarding distinctive criteria in a systematic manner, leading to more realistic decisions about their capabilities and therefore enhancing the selection process for both better sustainable design possibilities and industrial product development.

Physical, mechanical, and water absorption behavior of coir/glass fiber reinforced epoxy based hybrid composites

Abstract: Fiber reinforced polymer composites has been used in a variety of application because of their many advantages such as relatively low cost of production, easy to fabricate, and superior strength compare to neat polymer resins. Reinforcement in polymer is either synthetic or natural. Synthetic fiber such as glass, carbon, etc. has high specific strength but their fields of application are limited due to higher cost of production. Recently there is an increase interest in natural composites which are made by reinforcement of natural fiber. In this connection, an investigation has been carried out to make better utilization of coconut coir fiber for making value added products. The objective of the present research work is to study the physical, mechanical, and water absorption behavior of coir/glass fiber reinforced epoxy based hybrid composites. The effect of fiber loading and length on mechanical properties like tensile strength, flexural strength, and hardness of composites is studied. The experimental results reveal that the maximum strength properties is observed for the composite with 10 wt% fiber loading at 15 mm length. The maximum flexural strength of 63 MPa is observed for composites with 10 wt% fiber loading at 15 mm fiber length. Similarly, the maximum hardness value of 21.3 Hv is obtained for composites with 10 wt% fiber loading at 20 mm fiber length. Also, the surface morphology of fractured surfaces after tensile testing is examined using scanning electron microscope (SEM). POLYM. COMPOS., 35:925–930, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers

Experimental Investigation of Mechanical behavior of Jute-Flax Based Glass Fiber Reinforced Composite

Abstract: Present technological development and innovation needs a better class of material that meets all the practical applications along with its environmental friendly nature and economical value. Hybrid natural fiber composites, a sector of natural composites meets these requirements. This paper deals with fabrication, mechanical characterization of a hybrid (Jute+Flax+GFRP) composite and also the comparison of it with the (Jute+GFRP) based composite. These composites are fabricated using hand lay-up technique. The arrangement of hybrid composite is such that a layer of vertically laid flax fiber is flanked between layers of horizontally laid jute fiber. Epoxy resin alongside with HY951 hardener is used as the binding agent throughout the layer. Glass fiber laminates are used on both sides for improving the surface finish and surface hardness. The volumetric fraction is such that one third of total volume is occupied by Jute and Flax fibers. Test results shows that the hybrid natural composite has excellent properties under tensile, flexural loading. At last failure morphology analysis is done using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and the internal structure of the broken specimen is discussed.

Process-controlled optimization of the tensile strength of bamboo fiber composites for structural applications

Abstract: A straightforward mechanical processing protocol for raw bamboo, which leads to a fibrous material with physical features that are mainly defined by the bamboo species, has been developed. This material was used as a natural fiber source for the production of a high-tensile fiber reinforced composite. Thereby, controlling the parameters of the underlying hot press fabrication process turned out to be crucial for a systematic tuning of the tensile capacities of the resulting composite materials. Hence, the relationship between tensile strength, pressure, temperature and press/hold time is being analyzed. It has been observed that the composites reach a maximum tensile strength (∼180 MPa) at a certain pressure/temperature combination and any deviation from this range has a negative effect on the mechanical properties. The impact of the press/hold time, on the other hand, has been found to be rather small.

Impact Strength and Flexural Properties Enhancement of Methacrylate Silane Treated Oil Palm Mesocarp Fiber Reinforced Biodegradable Hybrid Composites

Abstract: Natural fiber as reinforcement filler in polymer composites is an attractive approach due to being fully biodegradable and cheap. However, incompatibility between hydrophilic natural fiber and hydrophobic polymer matrix restricts the application. The current studies focus on the effects of incorporation of silane treated OPMF into polylactic acid (PLA)/polycaprolactone (PCL)/nanoclay/OPMF hybrid composites. The composites were prepared by melt blending technique and characterize the composites with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). FTIR spectra indicated that peak shifting occurs when silane treated OPMF was incorporated into hybrid composites. Based on mechanical properties results, incorporation of silane treated OPMF enhances the mechanical properties of unmodified OPMF hybrid composites with the enhancement of flexural and impact strength being 17.60% and 48.43%, respectively, at 10% fiber loading. TGA thermogram shows that incorporation of silane treated OPMF did not show increment in thermal properties of hybrid composites. SEM micrographs revealed that silane treated OPMF hybrid composites show good fiber/matrix adhesion as fiber is still embedded in the matrix and no cavity is present on the surface. Water absorption test shows that addition of less hydrophilic silane treated OPMF successfully reduces the water uptake of hybrid composites.

Evaluation of surface treatment and fabrication methods for jute fiber/epoxy laminar composites

Abstract: Low fiber volume fraction and uncertain void content are continuing problems in natural fiber composites with continuous reinforcement. This study addresses these problems through the optimization of the Vacuum Infusion (VI) fabrication process for use with jute fabric reinforcement. The effects of reinforcement weave architecture, surface treatment, and fabrication method on the performance of jute fiber/epoxy laminated composites are subsequently characterized. Alkali and silane surface treatments were applied to enhance the fiber/matrix bonding. Wicking tests showed silane coupling produced jute yarn with zero water wicking and increased epoxy wicking. Extension of this treatment to reinforcing fabrics significantly reduced the moisture absorption of jute/epoxy composites. Constituent analysis showed traditional hand-layup fabrication method results in composites with unacceptably high void content. For this reason, the VI method was employed and optimized. The addition of pre-compaction and deadweight compaction steps resulted in composites having a near-zero void content and a very good fiber volume fraction. Mechanical testing showed that the studied surface treatments improved tensile modulus in jute/epoxy composites, regardless of reinforcement architecture. Unidirectional preforms increased tensile strength and modulus due to reduced fabric crimp. POLYM. COMPOS., 35:310–317, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers

Enhancement of mechanical properties of natural fiber composites via carbon nanotube addition

Abstract: The effects of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the mechanical and fracture properties of ramie fiber-reinforced epoxy composites were investigated. Three-point bending, short beam shear, single-edge-notch bending, and Charpy impact tests were employed to evaluate the properties of ramie fiber-reinforced composites without and with CNTs modification. The fracture mechanisms were revealed with the aid of the dynamic mechanical analysis, Fourier transform infrared, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. It was found that the mechanical and fracture properties of ramie fiber-reinforced composites were enhanced by incorporating multiwalled carbon nanotubes, except the impact fracture toughness. The unique chemical compositions and the multiscaled nanosized microstructures of natural fibers brought into focus new mechanisms for the improvement of the mechanical properties of natural fiber-reinforced composites.

Eco-friendly bio-composites using natural rubber (NR) matrices and natural fiber reinforcements

Abstract: Bio-composites are prepared using natural fibers for the reinforcement phase and natural rubber or other natural polymer for the matrix. Natural fibers are abundantly available and cheap, and many have high strength and stiffness, as well as low cost and density. The properties of bio-composites are influenced by a number of factors such as fiber type, environmental conditions of preparation, processing method, as well as any modifications to the fiber via physical or chemical means. Various production techniques such as extrusion, calendaring, compression molding, injection molding, etc., may be employed in the manufacture of composite products.