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Natural Composite Materials – The development of high-performance engineering products made from natural resources is increasing year on year. As companies face challenges with petroleum-based products, cost savings, weight reduction, and recyclability are driving the shift toward natural composites.
Designers and engineers consider natural composites durable, reliable, and lightweight, with excellent mechanical properties. As a result, these materials have gained popularity in the automotive, building, and construction industries. The automotive industry increasing use of natural composites is driving the market with Audi, Citroen, BMW, Fiat, Peugeot, Toyota, Volkswagen, Renault, Volvo and Ford all using natural fibre composites in their vehicles.
Manufacturers typically base these components on polypropylene resin and prefer natural fibres over glass and carbon materials due to their lower cost, lighter weight, and better recyclability.
Popular natural fibres include flax, jute, hemp, sisal, ramie, and kenaf, with growing interest in alternatives like wheat, bamboo, abaca, and pineapple leaf. However, their performance can vary due to sensitivity to harvest conditions, temperature, moisture, and UV exposure.
In all plant-based fibres, the basic chemical structure of the cellulose is similar but they have different degrees of polymerization. These factors all contribute to the diverse properties of natural fibres.
Using natural fibre composites offers many benefits. Many people view environmental concerns as the primary advantage. Since natural composites come from renewable sources, manufacturers can rely on their consistent availability. Producing them also requires only one-third of the energy needed to make glass fibres. Companies aiming to reduce their CO2 emissions often choose plant fibres because these fibres absorb as much CO2 during growth as they release during decompositio
When processing natural fibres, they offer non-harmful processing. No tool wear and no skin irritation which is seen with many glass fibres. Natural fibres offer higher specific strength and stiffness than glass, with lower density and weight. Manufacturers use natural fibres in processes like injection moulding, extrusion, compression moulding, RTM, and pultrusion—preferring injection and compression for smaller parts and open moulding for larger structures due to fibre compatibility.
Engineers often modify natural fibres to improve adhesion between different matrices by altering the fibres’ surface properties. A strong interface can deliver excellent strength and stiffness, although it tends to be very brittle. In contrast, a weaker interface can reduce stress transfer from the matrix to the fibre.Additives with higher amounts of anhydride create more sites for chemical links which result in higher performance at low additive content. This also reduced the amount of water absorption (critical to the mechanical properties of natural fibres).
There are, of course also numerous downsides to natural fibres. The primary issues are their relatively high moisture absorption and impact strength. Natural fibres absorb moisture that causes swelling. This can impact their use. When processing, natural fibres generate odour with the degradation process and have maximum processing temperatures that are lower than glass fibres. In order to increase the density of fibres, some often need to be pelletised to increase density.
Whilst using natural fibres can reduce C02 emissions there are environmental downsides to natural fibre composites, including low durability due to weathering or fungus attacks. The quality of natural fibres is not always guaranteed due to unpredictable influences such as harvest, weather and location.
Natural fibres in petrochemical-based thermoplastics and the thermoset matrixes have been studied extensively over the last two decades. Manufacturers most commonly use polyester, epoxy resin, phenol formaldehyde, and vinyl esters as matrices for natural fibre composites.
Researchers have developed new polymers from renewable sources, such as starch, a naturally occurring polymer. They have also tested other bio-based polymers, like soy-based biodegradable resins, with natural fibre composites, yielding varying results.
With further technological advances over the last ten years, and increasing interest from the automotive, construction and aerospace industries, natural fibres are becoming increasingly prevalent due to their lightweight, competitive specific strength and stiffness.
<p>The environmental benefits that come with natural fibre composites including C02 emissions and renewable nature as well as the ease and flexibility of manufacturing and processing with ongoing improvements in performance, durability and value. Natural composites still have a long way to come to match the performance, durability and resistance of its chemical counterparts but the gap is becoming smaller and smaller.
To talk to one of our technical experts about natural composites and how they may work for you and your business, send us an email or use our contact form and one of the team will be in touch.
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