Elsevier

Journal of Cleaner Production

Volume 172, 20 January 2018, Pages 566-581
Journal of Cleaner Production

Review
Characterization and properties of natural fiber polymer composites: A comprehensive review

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.10.101Get rights and content

Highlights

  • Detailed review on various mechanical properties and characterization studies have been reviewed.

  • New green materials resulted in the utilization of composites made from raw natural fibers and polymer matrices which are one of the most rapidly used research topics of recent times.

  • Increased utilization of natural fiber as reinforcement for composite materials can diminish the use of synthetic fibers and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Abstract

The world is in need of more eco-friendly material, therefore researchers around the globe focus on developing new materials that would improve the environmental quality of products. This need for new green materials has led to the utilization of composites made from raw natural fibers and polymer matrices, and this has become one of the most widely investigated research topics in recent times. Natural fiber composites are an alternative for replacing environmentally harmful synthetic materials and help control pollution problems. In addition, they are low cost, have better mechanical properties and require low production energy consumption. Also, using such materials in construction works, it is possible to improve the sustainability by eliminating construction wastes. Keeping in view all the benefits of natural fiber reinforced polymer composites, this paper first discusses various fabrication techniques employed for the production of these composites and then presents a detailed review of the research devoted to the analysis of their structure and properties by a variety of characterization techniques.

Introduction

Natural fiber hybrid composites can be viable alternatives to synthetic fiber reinforced composites as structural or semi-structural components, especially in lightweight applications (Sathishkumar et al., 2014, Sanjay and Yogesha, 2017, Yusriah et al., 2014). Nowadays, replacing synthetic fibers with natural fibers in the automotive industry can yield economic, environmental and social benefits. This area of research continues to be of interest to engineers and professionals as natural fiber composites turning out to be an alternative solution to the ever depleting non-renewable sources (Hom et al., 2015, Karnani et al., 1997, Singleton et al., 2003, Zah et al., 2007). It has been found that these natural fiber composites possess better electrical resistance, good mechanical properties, good thermal and acoustic insulating properties, as well as higher resistance to fracture (Vijaya Ramnath et al., 2014, Sanjay et al., 2015, Sanjay et al., 2016a, Yelin et al., 2016).

In the past, natural fibers were used in building and structural applications. More recently, some cellulosic products and wastes have been used as fillers in polymers to achieve cost savings and to impart some desirable properties (Chawla and Bastos, 1979, Kokta, 1988, Lubin, 1982, Maldas and Kokta, 1995, Piggot, 1980, Prasad et al., 1983). Already explored industrial applications include window and door frames, furniture, railroad sleepers, automotive panels and upholstery, gardening items, packaging, shelves etc., applications in aerospace, leisure, construction, and sports, industries and, in general applications that do not require very high mechanical resistance, but, instead, reduce the purchasing and maintenance costs (Faris et al., 2014, Ku et al., 2011, La Mantia and Morreale, 2011). Recent work on natural fiber composites reveals that the specific mechanical properties of natural fiber composites are comparable to those of glass fiber reinforced composites. Natural fiber composites, in the form of panels, tubes, sandwich plates, have been used to replace wooden fittings, and fixtures, for furniture, and noise insulating panels in the last decade (Alves et al., 2010, Mei-po et al., 2011). The classification of natural fibers is presented in Fig. 1 and annual productions of natural fibers are tabulated in Table 1.

Fibers are used as reinforcement material in composites, which are converted into different forms, such as mats, rovings, yarns and fabrics (Oksman, 2001, Van de Weyenberg et al., 2006, Andersons and Joffe, 2011). To date, several manufacturing methods have been investigated to produce composites, such as film stacking, vacuum infusion, hand lay-up, compression moulding, filament winding, manual winding, resin transfer moulding, injection moulding, and pultrusion, to name a few (Khondker et al., 2006, Liu and Hughes, 2008, Oksman, 2001, Yan et al., 2012). While selecting a particular manufacturing method, various factors need to be considered, including raw material properties, size and shape of the composite, economics involved in the process etc. (Danni et al., 2014, Mei-po et al., 2011). Table 2 presents a literature survey on processing techniques of natural fiber reinforced composites. In this review, a collective effort has been made to survey research on various properties of natural fiber composites and on their characterization using FTIR, XRD, and thermogravimetric analyses.

Section snippets

Tensile properties

Our literature review reveals that, in general, natural fiber reinforced composites are reported to exhibit comparable mechanical properties with those of synthetic fiber ones. For example, Van de Velde and Kiekens, 2002, established that the mechanical properties of flax, hemp, jute and sisal fibers are very good, which makes them capable of competing with glass fiber as regards strength and modulus. Moreover, such assertions can be extended towards other types of natural fibers as well. For

Water absorption properties

Water absorption studies are carried out to determine the effect of moisture on the shape, debonding and loss of strength in the composites (Tserki et al., 2006). Azwa and Yousif, 2013, concluded that alkali treated kenaf fiber composites showed less moisture absorption of 3.85%, compared to untreated fiber composites of 6.38% correspondingly. This influenced the weight loss behavior of the fiber composites mainly due to heat exposure. Also, because of the minimal voids and hemicellulose

Thermal properties

Feng et al., 2001, reported that the use of maleated-polypropylenes (MAPP) in kenaf-fiber/polypropylene composites changed the crystallization and melting behavior of these blends. Joseph et al., 2003, carried out studies on the thermal and crystallization behavior of short sisal fiber reinforced polypropylene (PP) composites. The thermal behavior of these composites was studied using Thermo-Gravimetry (TG) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The results revealed that fibers exhibited

Tribological properties

Friction and wear are two important tribological phenomena occurring during the relative motion of solid surfaces, which usually lead to dissipating energy and deteriorating materials (Emad et al., 2016). The tribological properties of phenol formaldehyde composites, with different volume fractions of sisal fiber, were investigated at high temperatures. The effect of different fiber contents on the coefficient of friction and the wear rate of sisal fiber/phenol formaldehyde composites was

FTIR, XRD and SEM characterization of natural fiber polymer composites

Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is an effective analytical technique for determining the functional groups interacting within natural fiber and for characterizing their covalent bonding information. The infrared spectra corresponding to a variety of plant fibers are illustrated in Table 4.

FTIR analysis confirmed that the components of sugar palm starch/agar blend composites were compatible and intermolecular hydrogen bonds existed between them. Fig. 13 presents the FT-IR data for

Conclusion

Among various natural materials, natural fibers offer several advantages over synthetic materials in reinforcing composites, due to their biorenewable characteristic and eco-friendly behavior, and can be thus effectively utilized for various applications. In this regard, the present article deals with the study of reliabilty of natural fibers and their composites. To assess the reliability of natural fibers, our survey discusses various results reported in the published literature on the

References (134)

  • R.M.N. Arib et al.

    Mechanical properties of pineapple leaf fiber reinforced polypropylene composites

    Mater. Des.

    (2006)
  • F.Z. Arrakhiz et al.

    Mechanical properties of high density polyethylene reinforced with chemically modified coir fibers: impact of chemical treatments

    Mater. Des.

    (2012)
  • Z.N. Azwa et al.

    Characteristics of kenaf fiber/epoxy composites subjected to thermal degradation

    Polym. Degrad. Stab.

    (2013)
  • M. Boopalan et al.

    Study on the mechanical properties and thermal properties of jute and banana fiber reinforced epoxy hybrid composites

    Compos. Part B Eng.

    (2013)
  • C. Chin et al.

    Potential of kenaf fibers as reinforcement for tribological applications

    Wear

    (2009)
  • D.B. Dittenber et al.

    Critical review of recent publications on use of natural composites in infrastructure

    Compos. Part A Appl. Sci. Manuf.

    (2012)
  • N. El-Tayeb

    A study on the potential of sugarcane fibers/polyester composite for tribological applications

    Wear

    (2008)
  • Ana Espert et al.

    Comparison of water absorption in natural cellulosic fibers from wood and one-year crops in polypropylene composites and its influence on their mechanical properties

    Compos. Part A Appl. Sci. Manuf.

    (2004)
  • T. Fakhrul et al.

    Degradation behavior of natural fiber reinforced polymer matrix composites

    Proced. Eng.

    (2013)
  • J.M. Ferreira et al.

    Stress analysis of lap joints involving natural fiber reinforced interface layers

    Compos. Part B Eng.

    (2005)
  • V. Fiore et al.

    Artichoke (CynaracardunculusL.) fibers as potential reinforcement of composite structures

    Compos. Sci. Technol.

    (2011)
  • K.L. Fung et al.

    An investigation on the processing of sisal fiber reinforced polypropylene composites

    Compos. Sci. Technol.

    (2003)
  • M.N. Ichazo et al.

    Polypropylene/wood flour composites: treatments and properties

    Compos. Struct.

    (2001)
  • K. Jayaraman et al.

    Mechanical performance of wood fiber-waste plastic composite materials

    Resour. Conservat. Recyl.

    (2004)
  • S. Joseph et al.

    A Comparison of the mechanical properties of phenol formaldehyde composites reinforced with banana fibers and glass fibers

    Compos. Sci. Technol.

    (2002)
  • P.V. Joseph et al.

    The thermal and crystallization studies of short sisal fiber reinforced polypropylene

    Compos. Part A Appl. Sci. Manuf.

    (2003)
  • R. Jumaidin et al.

    Characteristics of thermoplastic sugar palm Starch/Agar blend: thermal, tensile, and physical properties

    Inter. J. Biol. Macromol.

    (2016)
  • O.A. Khondker et al.

    A novel processing technique for thermoplastic manufacturing of unidirectional composites reinforced with jute yarns

    Compos. Part A Appl. Sci.

    (2006)
  • H. Ku et al.

    A review on the tensile properties of natural fiber reinforced polymer composites

    Compos. Part B Eng.

    (2011)
  • F.P. La Mantia et al.

    Green composites: a brief review

    Compos. Part A Appl. Sci. Manuf.

    (2011)
  • A. Le Duigou et al.

    Seawater ageing of flax/poly (lactic acid)biocomposites

    Polym. Degrad. Stab.

    (2009)
  • Q. Liu et al.

    The fracture behaviour and toughness of woven flax fiber reinforced epoxy composites

    Compos. Part A Appl. Sci.

    (2008)
  • L. Lundquist et al.

    Novel pulp fiber reinforced thermoplastic composites

    Compos. Sci. Technol.

    (2003)
  • B. Madsen et al.

    Physical and mechanical properties of unidirectional Plant Fiber composites – an evaluation of the influence of porosity

    Compos. Sci. Technol.

    (2003)
  • L.Y. Mwaikambo et al.

    Kapok/cotton fabric–polypropylene composites

    Polym. Test.

    (2000)
  • K. Mylsamy et al.

    The mechanical properties, deformation and thermo mechanical properties of alkali treated and untreated Agave continuous fiber reinforced epoxy composites

    Mater. Des.

    (2011)
  • R. Petrucci et al.

    Mechanical characterization of hybrid composite laminates based on basalt fibers in combination with flax, hemp and glass fibers manufactured by vacuum infusion

    Mater. Des.

    (2013)
  • A.K. Rana et al.

    Short jute fiber reinforced polypropylene composites: effect of compatibiliser, impact modifier and fiber loading

    Compos. Sci. Technol.

    (2003)
  • D. Ray et al.

    Impact fatigue behaviour of vinyl ester resin matrix composite reinforced with alkali treated jute fibers

    Compos. Part A Appl. Sci. Manuf.

    (2002)
  • M.J.M. Ridzuan et al.

    Thermal behaviour and dynamic mechanical analysis of Pennisetum purpureum/glass-reinforced epoxy hybrid composites

    Compos. Struct.

    (2016)
  • M.R. Sanjay et al.

    Studies on natural/glass fiber reinforced polymer hybrid composites: an evolution

    Mater. Tod. Proc.

    (2017)
  • M.R. Sanjay et al.

    Study on mechanical properties of natural - glass fiber reinforced polymer hybrid composites: a review

    Mater. Tod. Proc.

    (2015)
  • T.P. Sathishkumar et al.

    Tensile and flexural properties of snake grass natural fiber reinforced isophthallic polyester composites

    Compos. Sci. Technol.

    (2012)
  • H.P.S. Abdul Khalil et al.

    The effect of different laminations on mechanical and physical properties of hybrid composites

    J. Reinf. Plast. Compos.

    (2009)
  • R. Alfredo Sena Neto et al.

    Characterization and comparative evaluation of thermal, structural, chemical, mechanical and morphological properties of six pineapple leaf fiber varieties for use in composites

    Ind. Crop. Prod.

    (2013)
  • A. Athijayamani

    Studies on the Mechanical Properties and Machinability of Roselle-polyester and Roselle/sisal-polyester Hybrid Composites

    (2010)
  • S.H. Aziz et al.

    The effect of alkalization and fiber alignment on the mechanical and thermal properties of kenaf and hemp bast fiber composites: part 1-polyester resin matrix

    Compos. Sci. Technol.

    (2003)
  • M.N. Cazaurang et al.

    Physical and mechanical properties of henequen fibers

    J. Appl. Polym. Sci.

    (1991)
  • K.K. Chawla et al.

    The mechanical properties of jute fiber and polyester/jute composites

    Mech. Behav. Mater.

    (1979)
  • Chang Danni et al.

    Review of life cycle assessment towards sustainable product development

    J. Clean. Prod.

    (2014)
  • Cited by (1103)

    • Properties, production, and modification of polyhydroxyalkanoates

      2024, Resources, Conservation and Recycling Advances
    View all citing articles on Scopus
    View full text