Mechanical Properties of Sugar Palm (Arenga pinnata Wurmb. Merr)/Glass Fiber-Reinforced Poly(lactic acid) Hybrid Composites for Potential Use in Motorcycle Components

Innovative ionic liquid pretreatment followed by wet disk milling treatment provides enhanced properties of sugar palm nano-fibrillated cellulose

In order to accommodate the increased demand for innovative materials, intensive research has focused on natural resources. In pursuit of advanced substances that exhibit functionality, sustainability, recyclability, and cost-effectiveness, the present work attempted an alternative study on cellulose nanofibers derived from sugar palm fiber. Leveraging an innovative approach involving ionic liquid (IL) pre-treatment, bleaching, and wet disc mill technique, nano-fibrillated cellulose (NFC) was successfully obtained from the sugar palm fiber source. Remarkably, 96.89% of nanofibers were extracted from the sugar palm fiber, demonstrating the process's efficacy and scalability. Further investigation revealed that the sugar palm nano-fibrillated cellulose (SPNFC) exhibited a surface area of 3.46 m2/g, indicating a significant interface for enhanced functionality. Additionally, the analysis unveiled an average pore size of 4.47 nm, affirming its suitability for various applications that necessitate precise filtration. Moreover, the surface charge densities of SPNFC were found to be -32.1 mV, offering opportunities for surface modification and enhanced interactions with various materials. The SPNFC exhibit remarkable thermal stability, enduring temperatures of up to 360.5 °C. Additionally, the isolation process is evident in a significant rise in the crystallinity index, escalating from 50.97% in raw fibers to 61.62% in SPNFC. These findings shed light on the vast potential and distinct features of SPNFC, opening the path for its application in a wide array of industries, including but not limited to advanced materials, biomedicine, and environmental engineering.

Comparative Evaluation of the Stiffness of Abaca-Fiber-Reinforced Bio-Polyethylene and High Density Polyethylene Composites

The use of bio-based matrices together with natural fibers as reinforcement is a strategy for obtaining materials with competitive mechanical properties, costs, and environmental impacts. However, bio-based matrices, unknown by the industry, can be a market entry barrier. The use of bio-polyethylene, which has properties similar to polyethylene, can overcome that barrier. In this study, composites reinforced with abaca fibers used as reinforcement for bio-polyethylene and high density polyethylene are prepared and tensile tested. A micromechanics analysis is deployed to measure the contributions of the matrices and reinforcements and to measure the evolution of these contributions regarding AF content and matrix nature. The results show that the mechanical properties of the composites with bio-polyethylene as a matrix were slightly higher than those of the composites with polyethylene as a matrix. It was also found that the contribution of the fibers to the Young's moduli of the composites was susceptible to the percentage of reinforcement and the nature of the matrices. The results show that it is possible to obtain fully bio-based composites with mechanical properties similar to those of partially bio-based polyolefin or even some forms of glass fiber-reinforced polyolefin.

Ethno-pharmacological and industrial attributes on the underutilized Arenga species in India

The genus Arenga belongs to the Arecaceae family, which has a significant economic value. Several species of this genus have a decent potential of becoming an industrial crop. In India, four species of the genus, namely Arenga pinnata, A. obtusifolia, A. micranta, and A. wightii have been reported. These species have not been cultivated on a commercial scale in most of the growing regions. People use this plant directly from the forest or those produced in their backyard, even though productivity is minimal. To date, several studies from throughout the world have reported numerous beneficial roles of such species. Proper use of such plants or their products has immense significance in the food, fiber, and pharmaceutical industry. These plants are also recognized as ecologically significant plants. In this article, we have presented an up-to-date review on the species of Arenga reported from India along with their potential utility as industrial crops. This review is motivated by the desire to produce many eco-friendly resources from A. pinnata and other species of Arenga, which can contribute to an increase in the standard of living and economy of many nations, including India. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Arenga has a lot of potential as medicinal as well as industrial raw materials. Despite this, these plants are somehow underutilized and have not gained much attention in international trade. In this communication, we have presented some aspects of these plants by reviewing many research articles and conference proceedings. The utilization of these plants as traditional medicine serves an important part in basic health care for many people in developing nations. Gradual study and clinical trial of different formulations of these plants can explore novel drugs for some critical disorders. We also highlighted the industrial uses of these species. Biofuel and fiber obtained from A. pinnata have been appreciated by the researchers. This article points out some attributes of these plants that required further improvement. Botanists and phytochemists will appreciate the description of the medicinal properties of these plants and the biological data provided in the article.

Thermal Stability, Dynamic Mechanical Analysis and Flammability Properties of Woven Kenaf/Polyester-Reinforced Polylactic Acid Hybrid Laminated Composites

This paper presents the thermal and flammability properties of woven kenaf/polyester-reinforced polylactic acid hybrid laminated composites. The effects of the fiber content and stacking sequences of hybrid composites were examined. The hybrid composites were fabricated using the hot press method. Thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, dynamic mechanical analysis, and flammability properties of woven kenaf/polyester-reinforced polylactic hybrid composites were reported. The thermal results have demonstrated the effect of the hybridization of the composites on the thermal stability and viscoelastic properties of the laminates. The work also measured the burning rate of the hybrid composites during the flammability test. The S7 sample that consisted of all woven kenaf layers in composite recorded the highest char residue of 10%, and the S8 sample displayed the highest decomposition temperature among all samples. However, as for hybrid composites, the S5 sample shows the optimum result with a high char yield and exhibited the lowest burning rate at 29 mm/min. The S5 sample also shows the optimum viscoelastic properties such as storage and loss modulus among hybrid composites.

Properties Enhancement Nano Coconut Shell Filled in Packaging Plastic Waste Bionanocomposite

Plastic waste recycling has been proposed as a long-term solution to eliminate land and marine deposit. This study proposed a new approach to fabricate biocomposites of nano-sized fillers and low matrix compositions with a great performance by using plastic packaging waste different from the conventional biocomposite. Coconut shell, an agricultural waste, wasbonded with waste plastic to form a biocomposite with a coupling agent. The optimum percentage composition and the effect of coconut shell ball milling time on the properties of the biocomposite were studied with density, thickness swelling, porosity flexural strength, flexural modulus, compressive strength, thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, scanning electron microscope (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The results showed that the optimum performance of biocomposite was obtained at 30/70 (wt.%) plastic waste to coconut shell ratio, where 70 wt.% was the highest coconut shell composition that can be achieved. Furthermore, for 30 wt.% of polypropylene (low matrix), the performance of biocomposite improved significantly with milling time due to enhanced interaction between filler and matrix. As the milling time was increased from 0 to 40 h, the density increased from 0.9 to 1.02 g/cm3; thickness swelling decreased from 3.4 to 1.8%; porosity decreased from 7.0 to 3.0%; flexural strength increased from 8.19 to 12.26 MPa; flexural modulus increased from 1.67 to 2.87 GPa, and compressive strength increased from 16.00 to 27.20 MPa. The degradation temperature of biocomposite also increased as the milling duration increased from 0 to 40 h. The melting temperature increased significantly from 160 to 170 °C as the milling duration increased from 0 to 40 h. The depolymerisation occurred at 350 °C, which also increased with milling duration. This study revealed that the performance of biocomposite improved significantly with a lower percentage matrix and fillernanoparticle rather than increasing the percentage of the matrix. The nanocomposite can be used as a panelboard in industrial applications.

Physical, Mechanical, and Morphological Properties of Treated Sugar Palm/Glass Reinforced Poly(Lactic Acid) Hybrid Composites

This research was performed to evaluate the physical, mechanical, and morphological properties of treated sugar palm fiber (SPF)/glass fiber (GF) reinforced poly(lactic acid) (PLA) hybrid composites. Morphological investigations of tensile and flexural fractured samples of composites were conducted with the help of scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Alkaline and benzoyl chloride (BC) treatments of SPFs were performed. A constant weight fraction of 30% total fiber loading and 70% poly(lactic acid) were considered. The composites were initially prepared by a Brabender Plastograph, followed by a hot-pressing machine. The results reported that the best tensile and flexural strengths of 26.3 MPa and 27.3 MPa were recorded after alkaline treatment of SPF, while the highest values of tensile and flexural moduli of 607 MPa and 1847 MPa were recorded after BC treatment of SPF for SPF/GF/PLA hybrid composites. The novel SPF/GF/PLA hybrid composites could be suitable for fabricating automotive components.