Centre for Advanced Composite Materials

Green composites or high performance biocomposites

The research goals are to design, manufacture and analyse light weight composite products using natural reinforcements and polymers produced from both synthetic and natural resources.

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The usage of natural fibre composites in essentially non-load-bearing applications has seen a rapid growth in the past few years. Natural fibres such as sisal, flax, jute and woodfibres possess good reinforcing capability when properly compounded with polymers.

The advantages of natural fibres over synthetic fibres are low density, renewability, favourable values of specific strength and specific modulus, excellent chemical resistance and significant processing benefits which require minor changes to equipment.

Natural fibre-reinforced thermoset and thermoplastic composites have found a wide array of applications in the building and construction industry in products such as door and window frames, decking material, railings for parapet walls and furniture sections, and the automobile industry in items such as door panels, seat backs, headliners, package trays, dashboards and trunk liners.

Economics and other related factors in many countries, where natural fibres are abundant, demand scientists and engineers to apply appropriate technology to utilise these natural fibres as effectively and economically as possible to produce good quality fibre-reinforced polymer composites for housing and other needs.