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This paper investigates the influence of bamboo fibre loadings (30, 40, 50 and 60 wt%) on the physical, tensile and dimensional behaviour of short‐bamboo‐fibre‐reinforced bio‐epoxy matrix composites. Water absorption, thickness swelling, density, void content, tensile and thermomechanical analysis were determined. The findings indicated that higher fibre loading led to elevated water absorption and increased thickness swelling in bamboo fibre composites. The order of thickness swelling and water absorption behaviour was bio‐epoxy < B‐30 < B‐40 < B‐50 < B‐60. Similarly, the measured density of composites increased with respect to fibre loading. However, the void content decreased when the fibre loading was >40 wt%. Concerning tensile characteristics, it was observed that all composite materials displayed lower tensile strength compared to the bio‐epoxy matrix. However, there was a notable enhancement in the elasticity of the composites. As an example, B‐60 exhibited the highest Young's modulus at 7.33 GPa. The analysis of the fracture behaviour of tension‐tested samples was conducted using images obtained from SEM. The coefficient of thermal expansion was increased drastically as fibre loading increased. This indicated that the dimensional change was higher. Thus, it is desirable to have lower fibre loading to obtain better dimensional stability under the influence of temperature. © 2023 Society of Industrial Chemistry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study evaluated the effect of adding different proportions (3/7, 1/1, and 7/3) of pineapple leaf fiber to composites reinforced with olive trunk leaves powder by measuring tensile properties, moisture absorption, and thermal stability. The results showed that the proportion of pineapple leaf fiber in the hybrid composites strongly influenced tensile properties, moisture absorption, and thermal stability. Increasing pineapple leaf fiber loading from 12 wt% to 28 wt% resulted in an important increase in tensile strength, namely an average of 46%. However, the tensile strength and Young's modulus of the hybrid composites were inferior to those of the parent composites, which could be attributed to the relative inability of the hybrid composites to withstand tensile loads. Thermo‐gravimetric analysis results showed that the introduction of even the lowest amount of pineapple leaf fibers in the olive trunk leaves improved the thermal stability of the composites, bringing the degradation onset above 240°C, therefore suggesting the possibility of a future processing with most thermoplastic matrices. The differences in thermal stability between epoxy composites with 7/3 olive trunk leaves powder/pineapple leaf fiber, 1/1 olive trunk leaves powder/pineapple leaf fiber, and 3/7 olive trunk leaves powder/pineapple leaf fiber were very limited. Regarding moisture absorption, the presence of olive trunk leaves powder considerably reduced the weight gain, and also passing from 1/1 to 7/3 olive trunk leaves/pineapple leaf fibers offered a distinct advantage, measurable as more than 1% reduction in water saturation content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, the fabricated polylactic acid (PLA) and hybrid natural fiber (NF) biocomposites via a melt extrusion method were investigated. NFs from locally grown plants were utilized as fillers. Polyethene glycol (PEG) was used as the plasticizer to improve the processability of the PLA. The effect of PLA/NF biocomposite processing was assessed by mechanical characterization (tensile, modulus, strain at break, and impact tests), and thermal properties (thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry [DSC] analysis). The dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and thermo‐mechanical analysis (TMA) of the samples were also analyzed. The mechanical properties of PLA/NF biocomposites improved as compared with that of PLA. The DMA findings show that the storage modulus and loss modulus exhibited a slight reduction for PLA/NF biocomposites compared with the PLA sample. In opposite, the glass transition temperature (Tg) from DSC thermogram results showed no obvious changes in values compared with the PLA sample. Furthermore, the findings of TMA showed a significant decrease in coefficient of thermal expansion values of PLA/NF biocomposites compared with those of PLA samples. The overall findings from this work indicated that PLA/NF biocomposites have the potential to make novel biocomposites and suitable for further application especially in biomedical applications due to its good stiffness, tensile strength, and dimensional stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this work was to produce poly(butylene adipate‐co‐terephthalate) (PBAT) membranes packed with nanocrystalline cellulose (NCCs) using an phase inversions technique induced by water vapor and crystallization. Four membranes containing NCCs at concentrations ranging from 0% to 3% were produced and characterized utilizing a variety of materials research techniques. The 3% NCC‐filled membrane exhibited a conspicuous and well‐assimilated polymeric structure during morphological testing. Meanwhile, increasing the NCCs from 0% to 3% loadings may enhance membrane porosity while simultaneously decreasing pore size. The thermal resistance of the clean membrane was boosted significantly by a 1% NCC loading, but dropped significantly with 2% and 3% NCC loadings owing to the blazing behavior of sulfated nanocellulose. Additionally, when compared to other samples, the membrane with a 3% NCC loading exhibited the highest mechanical characteristics for Young's modulus (3.34 GPa), elongation at break (9.7%), and tensile strength (32.9 MPa). The continuous operation test revealed that a 3% NCC loaded membrane had maximum removal effectiveness for metal ions of chromium with 92% and manganese with 90%. Hence, the NCCs‐filled PBAT composite membranes have high potential for treatment of wastewater streams in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The consequence of 2% v/v silane‐treated and 4% v/v H2O2‐treated upon thermal and acoustic behavior of hybrid oil palm EFB (OPEFB) and sorghum stalks bagasse fiber (SCB) reinforced phenolic composites for wall thermal insulation application is discussed in this paper. Hand lay‐up approach was adopted to manufacture plain and hybrid composites with diverse formulation ratios such as 70:30 (7OPEFB:3SCB), 50:50 (5OPEFB:5SCB), and 30:70 (3OPEFB:7SCB). The experimental samples were manufactured with a purpose density of 0.5 g/cm3. Plain and hybrid composites were investigated for thermal analysis and thermal conductivity testing. Impedance tubes were used for acoustic behavior analysis of composites. Hybridization of H2O2 treated HT 50:50 (5OPEFB:5SCB) showed greater thermal cohesion with a final residual of 58.69%, followed by hybridization of silane‐treated ST 50:50 (5OPEFB:5SCB) with a residual of 45.10%. This study looks at four distinct air gap thicknesses (0 mm, 10 mm, 20 mm, and 30 mm). The results reveal that silane‐treated ST 50:50 (5OPEFB:5SCB) hybrid composites and H2O2‐treated HT 50:50 (5OPEFB:5SCB) hybrid composites improved sound absorption coefficients more than 0.50. Thus, we concluded that thermal and sound absorption performances of hybrid composites from agro waste promise an environmentally friendly alternative solution in wall building material production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advanced, functional, and novel electrocatalytic material for the electrochemical water splitting is core to the renewable energy sector. Herein, we fabricated CoCu oxide functional material on the nickel foam by a hydrothermal method that is highly rich in copper nanoparticles. The composite material showed superfast electrocatalytic performance in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). A distinguished durability test was obtained; the Tafel slope is relatively weak on an overpotential at 10 mA/cm2 obtained potential 270 mV and was determined for the developed electrocatalyst, which is very closer to the RuO/C. The attractive features of the newly developed material are high abundance in nature, environment‐friendly, cost‐effectiveness, and superior for the OER activity being non‐precious material. The developed catalyst revealed good stability and durability, which indicate its practical applications and long‐term stability. This strategy offered to effectively hierarchical low‐cost and best structural properties for the electrocatalyst containing rare‐earth metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, thermal analysis of olive/bamboo fiber‐based epoxy hybrid composites was carried out. Three types of olive fibers, which are olive tree small branch (OTS), olive tree big branch (OTB), and olive tree leaves (OTL), along with bamboo fibers (B), were used to fabricate the composites. Thermal properties of hybrid composites were examined by the thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA), dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA), and thermomechanical analyzer (TMA). It was found that the thermal stability improved with the incorporation of hybrid fibers in epoxy composites compared to pure fiber composites. Hybrid composite (OTS‐B) exhibited a lower residue (15.82%) whereas hybrid composites (OTB‐B and OTS‐B) show 54.65% and 54.53% weight loss at the maximum decomposition temperature. DMA results showed that the storage modulus and loss modulus reduced with hybrid fiber composites while the damping factor (tan delta) was increased. The storage modulus values of the pure composite sample (B) exhibited a higher increased (3150 MPa). In contrast, the pure composite sample (B) exhibited the highest loss modulus (337 MPa). From TMA analysis, OTL‐B hybrid composite presented a higher Tg and lower coefficient of thermal expansion. We concluded that finding from this work will strengthen attracting interpretation of utilization of two different fibers to fabricate hybrid composites for various lightweight purposes in a wide‐ranging choice of industrial applications such as biomedical tools, automobile, and construction fields. Additionally, a novel method can be used to develop hybrid biocomposites materials, which have potential applications in biomaterials and engineering areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the alkali‐treated and untreated hybrid fibers incorporated with bio phenolic matrix to enhance the chemical interactions, mechanical and thermal properties have been investigated. The oil palm fiber (OPF) and pineapple fiber (PALF) were utilized as reinforcements into bio phenolic resin. The improvements in chemical interactions were monitored by the Fourier transform infrared spectrometer. The modifications of the surface for hybrid natural fibers (OPF/PALF) were enhanced in comparison to pure fiber composites. The composites' dynamic mechanical behavior such as storage modulus, loss modulus, and damping properties were also investigated by dynamic mechanical analysis. Thermogravimetric analysis analyzed the performance of untreated (OPF and PALF) and treated (OPF/OPF) composites at elevated temperature and observed adequate interfacial bonding as a result of the improvements in thermal stability. The results presented that alkali) NaOH(incorporation in hybrid composites (OPF/PALF) results in increased the tensile strength and modulus among all composites. Furthermore, the tensile strength and modulus improved to the maximum value for treated 50% PALF composite compared to other composites. The hybridisation of treated alkali (5% NaOH/50% PALF) fiber shows best performance on tensile strength and modulus with 33.3 and 7535.2 MPa, respectively compared to other composites. The alkali‐treated hybrid composites (NaOH/1OPF.1PALF) exhibited the greatest flexural strength (99.8 MPa) and modulus (8813.1 MPa). The enhancement of the interfacial adhesion between pure and hybrid fiber composites and bio phenolic matrix through the mercerisation of OPF and PALF fibers reinforced composite played an essential role in improving the mechanical properties of composites via alkali treatment with NaOH solution. Natural fiber reinforced composites are commercially attractive for high‐volume applications; while their properties can be improved by adding alkali solution as stabilizers. It can be recommended from the findings of this study that the alkali treatment (5% NaOH) can be used to enhance the efficiency of agriculture waste biomass. Additionally, the hybridization of bio‐fiber composites has potential to develop novel type of biodegradable and sustainable composites suitable for various industrial and engineering applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The processing of olive (Olea europaea L.) oil results in large quantities of solid waste consisting primarily of tree pruning remainders from olive trees growing. This has led to the idea of utilizing the leftovers into a value‐added product; natural composite materials are utilized as alternatives to environmentally damaging synthetic materials. This study deals with the evaluation of the filling properties of the residue; olive tree small branch (OTS), olive tree big brunch (OTB) and olive tree leaves powder, for epoxy matrix biocomposite. Olive powder reinforced epoxy composite was processed at 40% filler loading. In this paper, the various forms of impacts of filler within epoxy on the physical and mechanical of epoxy composites were scrutinized by tensile, flexural, impact, thickness swelling, and water absorption tests. From the observation, it was discovered that the tensile and flexural strength of epoxy composite reinforced with OTS and OTB increased by about 27% and 47%, respectively. The impact strength values of OTS and OTB epoxy composites were 8.61, 7.88, and 5.97 J/m, respectively, while the virgin epoxy increased up to 16 J/m. The microstructure of the composites is also analyzed using scanning electron microscopy to analyze interfacial bonding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, oil palm fiber (OPF) and pineapple fiber (PALF) reinforced biophenolic resin (BPHR) composites and hybrid composites were fabricated by hand lay‐up technique. Structural, thermal and mechanical properties of pure and hybrid composites analyzed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), thermal gravimetric analyzer (TGA), dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA), and universal testing machine. Achieved results indicated that OPF/PALF hybrid composites show better properties as compared with pure composites. It was observed that the tensile and flexural characterizations improved with incorporating OPF and PALF fibers into BPHR composites in comparison to the neat BPHR matrix. The results of the thermal stability obtained from TGA tests showed that the reinforcement of pure fiber composites (OPF and PALF) and hybrid composites (OPF/PALF) in BPHR matrix were improved in comparison to that of neat BPHR matrix. The final decomposition temperature of 50% OPF and 3OPF/7PALF was the highest among all other composites (415.80 and 415.42°C). On the other hand, the residual amount of hybrid composite (1OPF/1PALF) was (24.43%), while the lowest residual amount exhibited in pure composite (50% PALF), which was 20.08%. The reinforcement of pure composite and hybrid composites into BPHR also improved the storage and loss moduli; however, the pure composite sample (50% OPF) exhibited a more significant increase than other composites loadings. Furthermore, the damping factor was reduced significantly by the reinforcement of hybrid composites over pure composites. This study showed that obtained hybrid composites are suitable to apply in various structural and nonstructural applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research designed to contribute to reduce the environmental impacts through the preparation of composites with recyclable materials to be used in different applications. To this end, composites have been developed based on jute recovered from packaging bags and polypropylene (PP) reclaimed from scraps obtained from the manufacture of PP yarns. The developed composites were then characterized. First of all, the optimum mass fraction was determined in order to achieve good mechanical performance. Several mass fractions (30%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 60%, and 70%) were experimented to find that the best characteristics were those of the biocomposite with 40% reinforcement (σ = 39.07 MPa, E = 4.60 GPa). With this ratio, jute–PP biocomposites were further developed with different jute architectures (Satin, Serge 2 × 2, Taffeta). A structural study of the different jute fabric wastes was carried out to confirm whether they are suitable for use with a thermoplastic matrix (i.e., at a processing temperature of ≥200°C). Tensile and bending tests were carried out on these composites to find out the effect of the weave structure of the reinforcement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]