Physical, chemical and surface morphological characterization of single areca sheath fiber

Abstract

The technological advance in various streams necessitated the increased demand for lesser weight and minimal cost materials. The concerns to ensure environmental sustainability, those newer materials were expected to be decomposable. In the current study, chemical, physical and mechanical and morphological aspects of areca sheath/frond fiber are investigated. It is observed that, the cellulose, hemicelluloses and lignin wt. % are 65.02, 8.26 and 18.62 respectively. The XRD study confirms the percent crystallinity of 81.33% and the crystallinity index of 0.77. The fiber further exhibited the tensile strength of 59.62±2.20 MPa. The TGA study reveals the higher degradation rate at 322.2 °C and the residual mass at 500 °C is 33.23%. The morphological study is done through scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The other properties such as density (0.9 g/cm3), the fiber length, diameter, and moisture uptake are also reported. From the very promising results, the fiber can be used as a reinforcement agent and the composites may find potential applications in automobile panels, interiors, structural light weight bearing sheets, etc.