Tensile properties of natural and synthetic rattan strips used as furniture woven materials

Abstract

This study investigated factors on tensile properties of rattan strips commonly used as woven materials for furniture. The factors were rattan type (bast, core, synthetic), gauge length (100, 140 mm), and unit loading speed (0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 mm/min/mm). Experimental results indicated that natural bast and core rattan strips, when subjected to tensile loading, behaved like synthetic rattan strips in terms of their stress-strain curves showing excessive plastic deformation. There was no significant difference in ultimate tensile strain between bast and synthetic rattan strips. Bast rattan strips had the highest ultimate tensile strength and modulus of elasticity among three materials evaluated in this study, followed by core rattan and synthetic strips. The major tensile properties of natural rattan bast strips can be influenced by their gauge length adapted to their evaluation test. Unit loading speeds, in general, had no significant effects on the major tensile properties of natural bast rattan strips but tended to significantly effect the ultimate strength of synthetic rattan strips, while less significantly for strengths at the proportional limit and yield point.