Mechanical performance evaluation of bamboo fibre reinforced polymer composites and its applications: a review

This paper reviews the mechanical performance of bamboo fibre reinforced polymer composites (BFRPs) for structural applications. Bamboo fibres are very promising reinforcements for polymer composites production due to their high aspect ratio, renewability, environmentally friendly, non-toxicity, cheap cost, non-abrasives, full biodegradability, and strong mechanical performances. Besides, bamboo has its own prospects and good potential to be used in biopolymer composites as an alternative for petroleum-based materials to be used in several advanced applications in the building and construction industry. For bamboo fibre to be reinforced with polymer, they must have good interfacial bond between the polymer, as better fibre and matrix interaction results in good interfacial adhesion between fibre/matrix and fewer voids in the composite. Several important factors to improve matrix-fibre bonding and enhance the mechanical properties of BFRP are by fibre treatment, hybridisation, lamination, and using coupling agent. Moreover, mechanical properties of BFRP are greatly influenced by few factors, such as type of fibre and matrix used, fibre-matrix adhesion, fibre dispersion, fibre orientation, composite manufacturing technique used, void content in composites, and porosity of composite. In order to better understand their reinforcing potential, the mechanical properties of this material is critically discussed in this review paper. In addition, the advantages of bamboo fibres as the reinforcing phase in polymer composites is highlighted in this review paper. Besides that, the bamboo-based products such as laminated bamboo lumber, glued-laminated bamboo, hybrid bamboo polymer composites, parallel bamboo strand lumber, parallel strand bamboo, bamboo-oriented strand board, and bamboo-scrimber have lately been developed and used in structural applications

Effect of silane treatments on mechanical performance of kenaf fibre reinforced polymer composites: a review

Abstract Natural cellulosic fibres, such as kenaf, can be used in polymeric composites in place of synthetic fibres. The rapid depletion of synthetic resources such as petroleum and growing awareness of global environmental problems associated with synthetic products contribute to the acceptance of natural fibres as reinforcing material in polymer composite structures. In Africa and Asia, kenaf is considered a major crop used for various cordage products such as rope, twine, and burlap and in construction, it is used for thermal insulation of walls, floors, and roofs and soundproofing solutions. In the furniture and automotive industry, it is used to manufacture medium-density fibreboard and other composite materials for structural applications. Kenaf is primarily composed of cellulose (approximately 40%–80%), which accounts for its superior mechanical performance. Kenaf fibres are chemically treated before mixing with the polymer matrix to improve their fibre interaction and composite performance. The alkaline treatment with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution is the most frequently used chemical treatment, followed by a silane treatment. Numerous chemical concentrations of NaOH and silane solutions are investigated and several combined treatments such as alkaline-silane. The present review discusses the effect of silane treatments on the surface of kenaf fibre on the fabrication of polymer composites and their mechanical properties.</jats:p

Effect of silane treatments on mechanical performance of kenaf fibre reinforced polymer composites: a review

Natural cellulosic fibres, such as kenaf, can be used in polymeric composites in place of synthetic fibres. The rapid depletion of synthetic resources such as petroleum and growing awareness of global environmental problems associated with synthetic products contribute to the acceptance of natural fibres as reinforcing material in polymer composite structures. In Africa and Asia, kenaf is considered a major crop used for various cordage products such as rope, twine, and burlap and in construction, it is used for thermal insulation of walls, floors, and roofs and soundproofing solutions. In the furniture and automotive industry, it is used to manufacture medium-density fibreboard and other composite materials for structural applications. Kenaf is primarily composed of cellulose (approximately 40%–80%), which accounts for its superior mechanical performance. Kenaf fibres are chemically treated before mixing with the polymer matrix to improve their fibre interaction and composite performance. The alkaline treatment with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution is the most frequently used chemical treatment, followed by a silane treatment. Numerous chemical concentrations of NaOH and silane solutions are investigated and several combined treatments such as alkaline-silane. The present review discusses the effect of silane treatments on the surface of kenaf fibre on the fabrication of polymer composites and their mechanical properties

Application of multispectral UAV for paddy growth monitoring in Jitra, Kedah, Malaysia

Abstract Rice is the staple food for most people in Southeast Asia, mainly Malaysia. Unfortunately, Malaysia does not reach a 100% self-sufficiency level on rice production due to inefficiency of rice farm management, pest and disease outbreak, poorly irrigation system, and climate change. Each spectral band of electromagnetic signature in the rice crops can be identified to analyse the crop condition based on the reflectance value. Therefore, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) can capture different spectral band images of the rice field depending on the sensors used. This study aims to produce a paddy growth map based on the normalized difference vegetative index (NDVI) value and validate the paddy growth map using the soil plant analysis development (SPAD) data. This study was carried out at the paddy field planted with PadiU Putra rice variety in Muda Agricultural Development Authority (MADA), Jitra in Kedah. Three reading samples for each point at the paddy field within 1 m radius were recorded. Then, the samples from each point were scanned using SPAD chlorophyll meter. The image data were collected using multispectral and RGB cameras at the altitude of 60 m, and a calibrated reflectance panel was used to calibrate the image. Ground control point (GCP) was placed at the four corners of the study plot, and it was being used as a georeferencing point for aerial imagery mapping. Those images were undergone orthomosaic process to produce a single overlapped image. NDVI was used to measure the healthy level of rice crops. NDVI map had shown the distribution of NDVI value across the study plot, which includes the healthy and less healthy vegetative area. SPAD value has no significant relationship with the aerial imagery of NDVI value. The NDVI map allows the farmers to monitor the paddy growth status and effectively improve their rice farm management. In the future, advanced classification methods based on the reflectance of weed, water, and soil can be prioritized and separated into different classes, whereby the NDVI map can be plotted on the paddy crops.</jats:p

Mechanical performance evaluation of bamboo fibre reinforced polymer composites and its applications: a review

Abstract This paper reviews the mechanical performance of bamboo fibre reinforced polymer composites (BFRPs) for structural applications. Bamboo fibres are very promising reinforcements for polymer composites production due to their high aspect ratio, renewability, environmentally friendly, non-toxicity, cheap cost, non-abrasives, full biodegradability, and strong mechanical performances. Besides, bamboo has its own prospects and good potential to be used in biopolymer composites as an alternative for petroleum-based materials to be used in several advanced applications in the building and construction industry. For bamboo fibre to be reinforced with polymer, they must have good interfacial bond between the polymer, as better fibre and matrix interaction results in good interfacial adhesion between fibre/matrix and fewer voids in the composite. Several important factors to improve matrix-fibre bonding and enhance the mechanical properties of BFRP are by fibre treatment, hybridisation, lamination, and using coupling agent. Moreover, mechanical properties of BFRP are greatly influenced by few factors, such as type of fibre and matrix used, fibre-matrix adhesion, fibre dispersion, fibre orientation, composite manufacturing technique used, void content in composites, and porosity of composite. In order to better understand their reinforcing potential, the mechanical properties of this material is critically discussed in this review paper. In addition, the advantages of bamboo fibres as the reinforcing phase in polymer composites is highlighted in this review paper. Besides that, the bamboo-based products such as laminated bamboo lumber, glued-laminated bamboo, hybrid bamboo polymer composites, parallel bamboo strand lumber, parallel strand bamboo, bamboo-oriented strand board, and bamboo-scrimber have lately been developed and used in structural applications.</jats:p

Extraction of Tannic Acid from Kenaf Bast Fibre using Ultrasonic Assisted Extraction

Tannic acid or tannin, type of phenolic compound contains in kenaf bast fibre. Conventional extraction has certain limitations in terms of time, energy, and solvent consumption. Ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE) can extract bioactive components in shorter time, low temperature, with lesser energy and solvent requirement. UAE as alternative extraction technique is better equipped to retain the functionality of the bioactive compounds. In this study, the conditions for ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE) of tannic acid from kenaf bast fibre by assessing the effect of sonication time and different duty cycles were optimized. The use of ultrasound to extract tannic acid from kenaf bast fiber was evaluated. Ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) was carried out using ethanol as solvent to intensify the extraction efficacy. Phytochemical screening was conducted to identify the presence of tannic acid in extracts. The extracts then were analyzed using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). It was found that 0.2429 mg/mL of tannic acid was obtained under the extraction conditions of extraction temperature of 40℃, sonication time of 20 minutes and duty cycle of 50%. From SEM analysis, it was found that the raw sample demonstrated rough surface and no porous but kenaf bast fibre display smoother surface with less impurities and few pores appeared after the extraction process using UAE. These results indicate that ultrasound-assisted extraction is an efficient method for extracting tannic acid from kenaf bast fibre with the advantages of lower extraction time and higher extraction yield