A. Zaidon

Oil Palm Biomass Fibres and Recent Advancement in Oil Palm Biomass Fibres Based Hybrid Biocomposites

© 2012 Khalil et al., licensee InTech. This is an open access chapter distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Oil Palm Biomass Fibres and Recent Advancement in Oil Palm Biomass Fibres Based Hybrid Biocomposites

Microstructural Study, Tensile Properties, and Scanning Electron Microscopy Fractography Failure Analysis of Various Agricultural Residue Fibers

This paper presents an approach to examine the microstructural properties and mechanical behavior of coconut husks, banana pseudo-stem, pineapple leaf, and sugarcane bagasse fibers by scanning electron microscope and mini-tensile tester, respectively. Single fiber bundles were examined by using scanning electron microscope. Tensile tests were performed at different diameters (0.15–0.55 mm) and gauge lengths (10, 15, 20, and 30 mm/min) to assess the effects of diameter and gauge length on tensile properties. It was found that fibers consisted of different types of regularly arranged cells. The tensile strength (310 MPa) and Young’s modulus (7.4 GPa) of pineapple leaf fiber bundles showed the highest value compared to the other fibers. The tensile strength and Young’s modulus decreased with the increase of diameter and gauge length of fiber bundles. Scanning electron microscopic fractography analysis showed comparatively heterogeneous ruptures associated with more participants of microfibrils for pineapple leaf and banana pseudo-stem fibers compared to coconut husk and sugarcane bagasse fibers. These fractographic observations were discussed in the light of current knowledge of the microstructure of each fiber and the corresponding mechanical properties.

Nonwood-Based Composites

Nonwood fibers are derived mostly from fast-growing plants. For the past few decades, nonwood plant fibers have received much attention, especially for composite material applications, because of their low cost, low density, high specific strength, good mechanical properties, nonabrasiveness, eco-friendliness, and biodegradability. This article reviews the performance of nonwood fibers found mostly in Asia, as well as issues regarding their bonding. Because various classifications of nonwood exist, this article sorts nonwood fibers based on previous classifications with some modifications, accounting for the availability of these fibers in Asia. The mechanical and physical properties of nonwood-based composites such as fiberboard, particleboard, and veneer-based laminated products also are reviewed and discussed. All fibers demonstrate certain advantages over conventional composites, with some having better mechanical and physical properties. This article also highlights the issues and challenges regarding the use of nonwood fibers as composite materials.