New Methodologies to Improve the Interfacial Interaction in Natural Fibre Polymer Composites

In recent years, because of rising environmental consciousness, depletion and emission issues of oil resources arose several research and production attempts to use natural fibres instead of synthetic fibres in fibre reinforced composites. Natural fibres can be a sustainable resource for composites with several advantages such as being biodegradable, cheap and available, having acceptable strength to weight ratio, low density, excellent insulating/noise absorption and reduced tool wear. Researchers increasingly explore and try to find novel and appropriate methods to utilize natural fibres in various industrial applications. However, plant based fibres have some drawbacks due to especially its chemical structure. When compared to its synthetic competitors like glass fibres, natural fibres have poor moisture/water resistance that causes swelling, poor fibre/matrix adhesion, low impact resistance, low durability, restricted maximum processing temperature, poor fire resistance, and quality variability. Among those disadvantages, it is fundamental to resolve problems of fibre-matrix interactions to produce a qualitative composite that meets certain specifications. Several researches revealed that improving the interfacial interactions in natural fibre-matrix composites by establishing better stress transfer results better physical, mechanical and thermal performance. Therefore, modifying the natural fibre surface through several methods in order to improve adhesion of fibre and matrix for successful utilization of these materials in different applications. This chapter provides a review of existing research that points out surface modification or treatment methods of natural fibres and underlines recent methodologies established improving interfacial interactions between natural fibres and matric for composite applications.