World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology

International Journal of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering

Vol:7, No:1, 2013

A Review on Natural Fibre Reinforced

Polymer Composites
C. W. Nguong, S. N. B. Lee, and D. Sujan

environmental sustainability. There are many types of natural

Abstract—Renewable natural fibres such as oil palm, flax, and cellulose fibre such as flax, hemp, sisal, banana, kenaf, jute
pineapple leaf can be utilized to obtain new high performance and oil palm fruit bunch cellulose fibre. South East Asia,
polymer materials. The reuse of waste natural fibres as reinforcement Indonesia and Malaysia in particular, being top producers of
for polymer is a sustainable option to the environment. However, due palm oil, have problems in disposing the empty fruit bunch
to its high hydroxyl content of cellulose, natural fibres are cellulose fibres and therefore, it is of interest to convert the
susceptible to absorb water that affects the composite mechanical waste into useful reinforcement. Advantages of natural fibres
properties adversely. Research found that Nano materials such as
as plastic reinforcement are due to its low density,
Nano Silica Carbide (n-SiC) and Nano Clay can be added into the
renewability, biodegradability, non-toxicity, good insulation
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polymer composite to overcome this problem by enhancing its

mechanical properties in wet condition. The addition of Nano property and machine wear. The low density of natural fibres
material improves the tensile and wear properties, flexural stress- is very beneficial in the automotive industry. A study has been
strain behaviour, fracture toughness, and fracture strength of polymer carried out which, shows that when 30% of glass fibres is
natural composites in wet and dry conditions. substituted with 65% of hemp fibres, the net energy saving of
50,000MJ (3 tons of emission) can be achieved [2]. However,
Keywords—Natural fibres, Nano Silica Carbide, Nano Clay, Wet the drawbacks of natural fibres are due to its poor wettability,
Condition, Polymer Composites. high moisture absorption, and incapability with some of the
polymeric matrices. The moisture absorption which is due to
I. INTRODUCTION hydrophilic property of natural fibres adversely affects the
mechanical properties such as flexural strength, flexural
P LASTIC industry ranks third in the world amongst all
other industry. According to a report from the Society of
the Plastic Industry, almost $400 billion annual sales were
modulus and fracture toughness.
Nano-Silicon Carbide had received a considerately
reported in United States alone [1]. Plastic which plays a significant attention in industry due to its excellent properties
which improved physical, thermal, and mechanical properties
supporting role to other industry is generally polymers, and
of material. It is often used as in reinforcement in matrix.
used in daily applications such as automotive, manufacturing,
Nano particles, due to its smaller particles size, enhance
packaging, building construction, home utilities, and the list mechanical properties in matrix. In addition, Nano silicon
moves on. carbide is expected to enhance the moisture barrier, wear,
As the popularity of plastic booming, the environmentalists thermal and mechanical properties in wet conditions.
continue to raise concern regarding the potential destruction In this paper, a review of epoxy composites reinforced with
that would be caused by the increasing number of disposal of various reinforcements such as natural fibres and silicon
plastics. In this decade, there is a serious concern towards carbide is studied. The paper emphasizes on palm oil fruit
research and implementation of biopolymers. These polymers bunch cellulose fibres as the natural reinforcement. Silicon
are biodegradable and are harmless upon disposal. Nowadays Carbide is studied as reinforcement in enhancing the
petroleum based polymers are most commonly utilized and mechanical properties of polymer composites.
these plastics are expected to fully decompose in thousands of
years. However, in 2008, a 16years old Canadian boy, Daniel II. ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
Burd was able to decompose a petroleum-based plastic bag in According to [2], the use of high density glass (2.5 g/cm3)
3 months. In order to isolate the bacteria that would as polymer composites in automobile production will increase
decompose the plastic bag, the mixed landfill dirt with yeast the specific weight of polymer matrix. It can produce negative
and tap water. The only by-product of the reaction was carbon environmental impact in terms of energy consumption.
dioxide and water [1]. Thus, with more research and Moreover, [2] also stated that the disadvantage of glass fibres
advancement in technology, plastic shall one day no longer be is its end life disposal where approximately up to 50% of
a threat to the environment. volume remains as unburned residues. Since 1990 the
Natural fibres in substitution of conventional glass fibres as researchers for automotive companies had explored that
rei[9nforcement are major steps taken in promoting natural fibre is more environmental friendly compared to
traditional glass fibre reinforcement due to its low density,
low cost and fundamentally biodegradable.
C. W. Nguong is with the Curtin University Sarawak, Miri, Malaysia
(phone: 0060168926239; e-mail: [email protected]). Reference [2] also shown the life cycle assessment (LCA)
S. N. B. Lee is with the Curtin University Sarawak, Miri, Malaysia (phone: of transport pallets made of polypropylene (PP) with china
0060168561137; e-mail: [email protected]). reed fibre with the LCA of the same PP pallets reinforced with
D. Sujan is with the Curtin University Sarawak, Miri, Malaysia (phone: glass fibres. According to the results obtained, the PP pallets
0060128535426; e-mail: d.sujan@ curtin.edu.my).

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 World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology
International Journal of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering
Vol:7, No:1, 2013

with natural fibre-reinforcement (NFR) shows lower the absence of oxygen. The process involves chemical
environmental impacts compared to PP pallets with glass fibre composition and physical phase changes. Pyrolysis will
reinforced (GFR). As conclusion, PP pallets with natural fibre contribute a layer called charred layer that will help to insulate
reinforcement is more environmentally friendly and provided lignocelluloses for further thermal degradation [3]. Table I
much greater lifetime compared with glass fibre reinforced. represents the approximate chemical composition, moisture
Besides, it also described the environmental impact of content and microfibrillar angle of selected vegetable fibres.
carbon storage potential of a specific moulded component for
automotive industry made of polypropylene reinforced with IV. TYPES OF NATURAL FIBER
hemp or glass fibres. According to the results obtained,
50,000 MJ (about 3 tons of CO2 emissions) of net energy were Natural fibres can be divided into animal fibres and plant
saved after 30% by weight of glass fibres replaced with hemp cellulose fibres. Plants that produce natural fibres are
fibres. Furthermore, it also shows that 21% weight was categorized into primary and secondary depending on the
reduced for Polypropylene (PP) reinforced with hemp utilization. Primary plants are grown for their fibres while
compared with Polypropylene (PP) reinforced with glass fibre. secondary plants are plants where the fibres are extracted from
It shows an approximation around 3.07 million tons of CO2 the waste product. There are 6 major types of fibres namely;
emissions (4.3% of total US industrial emissions) and 1.19 bast fibres, leaf fibres, fruit fibres, grass fibres, straw fibres
million cubic meter of crude oil could be saved if natural and other types (wood and roots etc.). There are thousands of
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composites would substitute 50% of glass fibre plastic used in natural fibres available and therefore there are many research
North America for Automotive applications [2]. interests in utilization of natural fibres to improve the
properties of composites [4]. Recycled cellulose fibres are
III. CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF NATURAL FIBER obtained from cellulosic waste products such as paper,
newspaper, cardboard and magazine. Fig 1 shows the
As stated by [3], natural fibres have complicated structures classification of natural fibres.
which are normally rigid, with crystalline cellulose micro
fibril-reinforced amorphous lignin and/or with hemi cellulosic
matrix. Furthermore, natural fibres (except cotton) are
generally composed of cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, waxes,
and some water-soluble compounds, where cellulose,
hemicelluloses, and lignin are the major constituents. Natural
fibres generally contain 60-80% of cellulose, 5-20% lignin
and moisture up to 20%. The surface of cell wall of natural
fibres will experience pyrolysis when the processing
temperature increases. Pyrolysis process is a chemical
decomposition of organic material at high temperature with

TABLE I
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION, MOISTURE CONTENT AND
MICROFIBRILLAR ANGLE OF VEGETABLE FIBRES [3] Fig. 1 Classification of natural fibres [2]
Cellulose (Wt%)

Moisture (Wt%)

V. POTENTIAL PLANT FIBERS

Lignin (Wt%)

Microfibrillar
Hemicellulose

Pectin (Wt%)

Angle (Deg)

Flex: Flax, Linumusitatissinum, which is under the bast fibres

is grown in temperate regions and is one of the oldest fibre
(Wt%)

Waxes
Fibre

crop ever. It is commonly used in composite area and in

higher value-added textile markets.
Flax 71 19.6 2.2 2.3 10 1.7 5-10
Hemp 72 20.1 4.7 0.9 9 0.8 2.6.2 Hemp: Hemp is another important member of bast fibres from
Jute 66 17 12.5 0.2 13 0.5 8 the Cannabis family. Like flex, it is also grown in temperate
Kenaf 51 21.5 10.5 3-5 region. Hemp receives considerable attention as it is currently
Sisal 73 12 12 10 16 2 16 subject to European Union subsidy for non-food agriculture
Henequen 78 4-8 13.1 and is of interest for more development in Europe.
PALF 76 8.85 11.8 14
Banana 64 10 5 11 Jute: Jute of genus Corchorus that is bast fibres with the
Abaca 59 12.5 1 8
highest production volume is the cheapest natural fibres.
Oil Palm 65 19 42
EFB
Countries such as Bangladesh, India, and China provide the
Oil Palm 60 11 46 best condition for the growth of jute.
Mesocarp
Cotton 88 5.7 0-1 8 0.6 - Kenaf: Kenaf of genus Hibiscus have about 300 species and
Cereal 42 23 16 8 is a new crop in United States which shows good potential for
Straw usage as reinforcement in composite products. Latest

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 World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology
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Vol:7, No:1, 2013

innovation in decortications separates core from the bast fibres Furthermore, there is possibility that the attracted water
combined fibre shortages, have gained the interest of utilizing might form another layer on the top water molecules that
kenaf as fibre source. previously absorbed. The attracted water will act as a
separating agent in fibre-matrix interface illustrated in Fig. 3.
Sisal: Sisal, Agave sisalana, is commercially produced in East In this case, separation between fibre and resin will happen.
Africa and Brazil. The global demand for sisal fibre and its The evaporation of moisture may happen during the process
products is predicted to decrease between 1998-2000 and and will influence the porosity in the matrix [6].
2010 by a yearly rate of 2.3% as agricultural twine. The
traditional market continues to decline by substitution of
synthetic substitutes and implementation of harvesting
technology that uses small amount or no twine.

Abaca: Abaca or banana fibre that is extracted from the

banana plant is durable and resistant to seawater. Abaca being
the strongest commercially available cellulose fibres is the
native plant of Philippines and is produced in Philippines and
Ecuador. In the past, it is the chosen cordage fibre for marine
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applications due to its superior properties.

Fig. 3: a) H-bonding between fibre and resin in dry condition
b) water acts as separating layer that leads to separation between
Pineapple leaf fibre: Pineapple, Ananas Comosus, is a fibre and resin in wet condition [6]
tropical plant indigenous of Brazil. It is rich in cellulose fibres
and the leaf fibres are waste product that are relatively cheap Reference [6] stated that due to the natural moisture of
and are of a concern for polymer reinforcement. atmosphere the absorption and desorption of natural fibre can
cause swelling in wet environment and shrinkage in dry
Oil Palm: Oil palms, is vastly produced in South East Asia, environment. Due to this, natural fibre will show poor
particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia. Oil palm empty fruit mechanical properties. Therefore, [6] stated that drying
bunch cellulose fibres are referred as relatively cheap or waste process for natural fibre is also important.
product in the industry and therefore, it is of interest to utilize
the cellulose fibres into beneficial products with higher
commercial value. It is studied that, oil palm empty fruit
bunch have the potential as plastic reinforcement.

VI. DISADVANTAGE OF NATURAL FIBER

According to some sources, [2], [3], [5], & [6], common
major drawbacks of utilizing natural fibre is its high hydroxyl
content of cellulose which makes it susceptible to absorb
water and consequently affects the mechanical properties of
composites adversely. As mentioned by Ray and Rout [9], this
is the natural behaviour of hydrophilic fibres. It also explained
that water molecules will tend to attract to hydrophilic groups
of fibres and reacts with hydroxyl group (-OH) of the
cellulose molecules to form hydrogen bonds. The schematic of
moisture absorption by natural fibres from Ray and Rout is
attached in Fig. 2 below.

Fig. 4 Formation of hydrogen bonds between hydroxyl groups of

natural fibre [6]

Moreover, the three important factors that will affect the

hydrogen bonding include mechanical anchoring, physical
molecular attractive force (Van der Waals force and hydrogen
bond) and chemical bonds between fibre and resin. Hydrogen
bonding is formed between the reaction of hydroxyl groups (-
Fig. 2 Schematic of moisture absorption by natural fibre [6] OH) in the main backbone chain of resin and natural fibre

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Vol:7, No:1, 2013

(Fig. 4). Consequently, resin with no hydroxyl group in the According to [8], it added Nano clay into sisal reinforced
backbone chain will have the weakest bonding because strong epoxy composites to test its water barrier properties. The
hydrogen bond does not form, hence it will show low polymer composites without and with different weight
adhesive properties [6]. percentage (1wt%, 3wt% and 5wt %) of Nano clay were
Research work by Alamri and Low [7] shows that the tested. The results show dramatic decrease in water mass
mechanical properties such as flexural strength, flexural uptake of Nano clay filled composites.
modulus, fracture toughness and impact strength increase with
the increases of cellulose fibre contained as reinforcement. On
the other hand, it also tested that the values of maximum water
diffusion coefficient increase with the increases of fibre
content. Fibre loadings of 19, 28, 40 and 46 wt% were used
for different testing specimens.
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Fig. 5 Water Absorption curves of Recycled Cellulose / epoxy

composites [7]
Fig. 7 Water uptake of unfilled and clay filled composite series [8]
According to Fig. 5, the water absorption increases with the
increase of recycled cellulose fibre content (RCF) due to Fig. 7 from [8] demonstrates the water uptake curves of clay
hydrophilic nature of cellulose fibres.
filled and unfilled composites series. It shows that the water
Several papers were found regarding to the methods of
uptake of unfilled composite was more than clay filled
overcoming the issue of natural fibre moisture absorption. composites. Equilibrium water content continuously decrease
Alamri and Low [5] had made a further research in another
as Nano clay content increase and maximum reduction was
research paper to find the solution to deal with water observed for 5% wt. micro clay filled composite. Reference
absorption for natural fibre reinforced epoxy. In their
[8] also explained that clay Nano layer creates an
research, Nano Silica Carbide n-SiC is added to observe the
impermeable medium to arrest the water flow and cause the
effect on water absorption of n-SiC reinforced RCF/epoxy water to take an indirect path and hence more time is needed
composites. The author verified that the addition of n-SiC will
for water uptake. This can result in decrease in equilibrium
eventually decrease the water uptake and enhance the
water content in Nano clay filled composite system [8]. All of
mechanical properties of the polymer. the equilibrium water content value for each specimen is
illustrated in Table II.

TABLE II
WATER UPTAKE CHARACTERISTIC OF UNFILLED AND CLAY FILLED
COMPOSITE SERIES [8]
Material Diffusivity Equilibrium water
(mm2/s) content (%)
Epoxy +SF 2.08 × 10-7 62.1
Epoxy +SF +1% nanoclay 2.07× 10-7 24.3
Epoxy +SF +3% nanoclay 2.40 × 10-7 15.8
Epoxy +SF +5% nanoclay 2.31 × 10-7 12.5
Epoxy +SF +5% microclay 2.36 × 10-7 19.6

VII. MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF NATURAL FIBER

Fig. 6 Water Absorption curves of n-SiC filled RCF/epoxy eco- REINFORCED POLYMER COMPOSITES
nanocomposites [5]
Reference [9] shows that enhancement of flexural strength
From Fig. 6 it can be observed that the high content of Nano (45.6%), fracture toughness (30%), were achieved by 1 wt %
particle decrease water uptake of the specimen and exhibit low nanoclay with recycled cellulose fibers and epoxy eco-
value of weight gain [5]. composites. Conversely, with more addition of nanoclay, no

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improvements in these properties due to increased voids, clay in composites changes the failure pattern from brittle to
viscosity and poor dispersion. It is also investigated that for ductile failure. This is because Nano clay acts as crack arrestor
the case of epoxy/RCF composites, the presence of RCF as during loading by inducing deformation mechanisms such as
reinforcement material greatly increased flexural strength crack pinning and debonding which results in specimen failing
(160%), fracture toughness (263%), compared to pure epoxy. under deformed condition [8].
The significant enhancement is clarified by the cellulose
fibre’s capability in withstanding bending and resisting
fracture force. The addition of Nano-clay to RCF/epoxy is
said to be insignificant for enhancement of flexural strength
and fracture toughness. Furthermore, Epoxy eco-composites
were reinforced with n-SiC and recycled cellulose paper
(RCF). The reinforcement of 1 wt. % n-SiC into epoxy resin
enhanced the flexural strength, flexural modulus and fracture
toughness. However, with higher increment of n-SiC, flexural
strength decline due to poor dispersion of n-SiC particles and
formation of particle agglomerations at high filler content
[10].
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Through some research, flexural strength, flexural modulus

and fracture toughness was found to decrease with water
absorption affected by degradation of bonding at the fibre-
matrix interfaces. The increased fibre content promotes higher
water absorption [7].
Reference [11] stated that the fracture toughness decreased
by 22.2% when epoxy composites is reinforced with banana
pseudo-stem fibre reinforcement while fracture toughness Fig. 9 Tensile Stress Strain Curves of Unfilled and Clay Filled
increased by 15.7% with coconut reinforcement and 17.8% Composite Series after Placing in Water [8]
with sugar cane bagasse reinforcement. This shows that not all
natural fibres would increase the fracture toughness of
polymer matrix composites.

A. Tensile Properties
According to experimentation conducted by Mohan and
Kanny [8], it shows that Nano clay or micro clay in the
composite changed the stress strain patterns (Fig. 8). The
modulus continuously increased as Nano clay content
increased. Reference [8] also stated that the addition of Nano Fig. 10 SEM picture of 5 w.t.% clay filled composite (a)before (b)
and after degassing [8]

According to Fig. 10, the cross section of 5% wt. Nano clay

filled composite shows the existence of voids before
degassing. Degassing is a process used to free the unwanted
air in a material. According to [8], hardener is added after the
mixing of Nano clay resin to ensure no air is trapped inside
the solution. The voids actually allow more water uptake into
the specimen.

B. Wear Properties

TABLE III
WEAR PROPERTIES OF UNFILLED AND CLAY FILLED COMPOSITE SERIES [8]
Material Before placing in After placing in
water % weight water % weight
loss loss
Epoxy +SF 11 15
Epoxy +SF +1% nanoclay 9 13
Epoxy +SF +3% nanoclay 8 11
Epoxy +SF +5% nanoclay 6 9
Fig. 8 Tensile Stress Strain Curves of Unfilled and Clay Filled Epoxy +SF +5% microclay 9 13
Composite Series before Placing in Water [8]

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flexural stress-strain curve for unfilled RCF/epoxy and 5wt%

n-SiC filled RCF/epoxy before and after placing in water is
illustrated in Fig. 13.

Fig. 11 SEM pictures of wear surface of unfilled composite (a)

before and (b) after placing in water [8]

According to [8], the weight loss is due to the increase of

wear properties for the specimen placed in water. As from
Table III, Nano clay filled composites give better wear
properties compared to unfilled and micro clay filled
properties. As conclusion, the addition of Nano clay improves
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the wear properties of the composites material. Fig. 11 shows Fig. 13 Stress-strain curves of RCF/epoxy filled with 0 and 5 wt% n-
SiC in dry and wet conditions
the wear surface of unfilled composites before and after place
in water. The matrix interphase and bonding of composite is
According to Fig. 13, the addition of n-SiC particle
better before placing in water. After it placed in water, it
decreased in the maximum stress of RCF/epoxy for dry
shows debonding of fibres and weak fibre-matrix interphase.
condition. However, the addition of n-SiC in wet condition
The wear properties of the composite will reduce in this
showed increase of maximum stress. The flexural properties
situation.
decreased due to water absorption, damaged and degradation
in fibre-matrix interfacial bonding. Moreover, the maximum
C. Flexural Stress- Strain Behaviour
strain was found increased due to the water absorption [5]. As
According to research conducted by [7], a stress- strain research found from [12] and [13], water molecules will act as
curve of two different percentages of recycled cellulose (RCF) plasticizer agent for reinforced fiber to increase the ductility
filled composites specimen 19 wt. % and 46 wt. % are used to of the specimen by increasing the maximum strain.
check its flexural behaviour. The graph plotted is illustrated in
Fig. 12. D. Fracture Toughness
According to [7], the relationship of fracture toughness of
dry and wet Recycled cellulose fibre (RCF) epoxy is
illustrated in Fig. 14.

Fig. 12 Stress- Strain Curves of Recycled Cellulose Fiber (RCF)

epoxy composites filled with 19 and 46 wt% [7]
Fig. 14 Effect of fiber content on fracture toughness of dry and wet
According to Fig. 12, it shows that composites filled with RCF/epoxy composites [7]
low RCF loading showed a low strain (0.003%) and low stress
that caused material failure. On the other hand, the reduction From Fig. 14, the addition of recycled cellulose fibre
in modulus occurs for low RCF. As for high percentage increased the value of fracture toughness compared to the neat
content of RCF, it shows a linear behaviour at higher strain epoxy specimen because higher RCF content will have higher
(0.013%) and the slope reduction until the failure of extensive pull outs, fracture and bridging [7]. Besides, the
composites occurs in higher stress value [7]. fracture toughness of 46% wt. RCF content increased up to
In another work by [5], where n-SiC was added to 294.1% compared to the neat epoxy. As for the effect of water
investigate the effect of water absorption on mechanical absorption, the fracture toughness generally decreased due to
properties of recycled cellulose fibre reinforced epoxy. The the moisture absorption but there was still an upward trend in

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Vol:7, No:1, 2013

fracture toughness for wet condition as the RCF content addition of n-SiC increased the value of fracture toughness. In
increased. This is also due to pull outs, fracture and bridging other words, it increased the crack propagation resistance and
to increase the crack propagation resistance [7]. enhanced the mechanical properties [5].

VIII. CONCLUSION
Natural polymer composites are more environmental
friendly compared to polymer composites with synthetic fibres
reinforced. Advantages of natural fibres as plastic
reinforcement are due to its low density, renewability,
biodegradability, non-toxicity, good insulation property and
machine wear. Natural fibre contains high hydroxyl content of
cellulose that makes it susceptible to water absorption that
affects the materials mechanical properties. However, Nano
materials such as Nano Silica Carbide (n-SiC) and Nano Clay
can be added into the natural fibre reinforced polymer
composite to overcome the water absorption problem.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Fig. 15 SEM images of fracture surface of different content of The Authors are grateful to the R&D Department, Curtin
RCF/epoxy composites (a)19wt% (b)28wt% (c)40wt% (d) 46wt% [7] University Sarawak for financial support to conduct this
research work under CSCRF scheme (Cost Centre No: 5004)
According to Fig. 15, the RCF content with lower fibre
content (19 and 28) wt. % showed high rich matrix compared
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