Innovative Banana Fiber Nonwoven Reinforced Polymer Composites: Pre- and Post-Treatment Effects on Physical and Mechanical Properties

Abstract

Four types of nonwovens were prepared from different sections of the banana tree e.g., outer bark (OB), middle bark (MB), inner bark (IB) and midrib of leaf (MR) by wet laid web formation. They were reinforced with two different types of matrices e.g., epoxy and polyester, to make eight variants of composites. Treatments including alkali on raw fibers, water repellent on nonwovens and gamma radiation on composites were applied in order to investigate their effects on properties of the composites such as water absorbency, tensile strength (TS), flexural strength (FS) and elongation at break (Eb%). Variations in the morphological structure and chemical composition of both raw banana fibers and fibers reinforced by the treatments were analyzed by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). OB composites exhibited higher water absorbency, TS and FS and lower Eb% compared to other types of composites. Epoxy composites were found to have 16% lower water absorbency, 41.2% higher TS and 39.1% higher FS than polyester composites on an average. Water absorbency of the composites was reduced 32% by the alkali treatment and a further 63% by water repellent treatment. TS and FS of the composites were on average improved 71% and 87% by alkali treatment and a further 30% and 35% by gamma radiation respectively.

The greatness of the characteristics fiber pseudo stem outer layer of Musa acuminata origin lombok Indonesia as reinforcing polyester composite

“…Research [11] used woven banana stem and banana leaf midrib as reinforcement for composite materials with epoxy and polyester matrices. Fiber treatments in the form of alkali, water repellent on nonwovens and gamma radiation on composites were applied to investigate their effect on composite properties such as water absorption, tensile strength (TS), flexural strength (FS) and elongation at break (Eb %).…”

A Review of Cellulosic Natural Fibers’ Properties and Their Suitability as Reinforcing Materials for Composite Panels and Applications

“…The banana fiber was reported to have been washed with alkali, which improved its water absorbency, luster, and strength. 107–111 The extracted fibers were observed to be in long strands and slightly dull yellowish, as shown in Figure 13. 98,112 A new banana fiber extraction machine has been designed with higher efficiency, as shown in Figure 14.…”

Assessing Crimp of Fibres in Random Networks with 3D Imaging

“…A synchrotron, radiation-based X-ray diffraction system was used to develop a parametric algorithm to determine the local fibre orientation of biological tissues; this was validated using cricket samples [ 6 ]. Motaleb et al (2021) used Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy to investigate the morphological structure and chemical composition of nonwoven fibres made of banana trees [ 7 ]. X-ray μCT systems are used to observe fibrous composites to evaluate damage after impact.…”