BIOCOMPOSITES BASED ON NATURAL FIBERS AND POLYMER MATRIX-FROM THEORY TO INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS

Over the last decades, due to the increased environmental awareness, numerous studies for production of biocomposites based on natural fibers have been published and many comprehensive reviews have been published. Compared with conventional reinforcements, such as glass and carbon fibers, natural fibers which are renewable resources, offer several other advantages including a wide availability (based on different vegetable species), recyclability, low density and low costs, low abrasion and preserving mechanical properties. Application of cellulose fibers in composites is not only beneficial from an ecological point of view, lowering the environmental impact of the final product within the production, usage and disposal period, but it offers further technical and economical benefits. Especially, natural fiber-reinforced biocomposites have the potential to replace current materials used for automotive industrial applications. In order to obtain composites with the best mechanical properties, most of the research activities in the last decades have been concentrated on the surface physical and chemical modifications of the fibers mainly to optimize their interfacial behavior.