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2022, Vol. 51(1S) 990 S–1006S
Article
Bacterial cellulose-
natural fiber composites
produced by fibers
extracted from banana
peel waste
Muhammad Awais Naeem
1
,
Qasim Siddiqui
2
,
Muhammad Rafique Khan
1
,
Muhammad Mushtaq
1
,
Muhammad Wasim
1
,
Amjad Farooq
3
, Tayyad Naveed
4
and
Qufu Wei
1,5
Abstract
In recent times, there is a growing demand for low-cost raw materials, renewable
resources, and eco-friendly end products. Natural fibers are considered as strong
candidates to be used as a potential reinforcement for composite manufacturing. In
the current study, natural fibers extracted from banana peel were coated with bacterial
cellulose through a green biosynthesis approach as well as by a simple slurry dipping
method. Thus, natural fibers from banana peel waste were used the first time, to
produce bacterial cellulose-natural fiber composites. SEM analysis revealed good inter-
action between the hybrid fibers and the epoxy matrix. Thermal gravimetric analysis
results revealed that the degradation temperature increases because of the addition of
bacterial cellulose on fiber surface, which improves the thermal stability. The maximum
thermal decomposition temperature (405C) was noticed for nanocomposites
1
Key Laboratory of Eco-Textiles, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, China
2
Department of Textile Engineering, BUITEMS, Quetta, Pakistan
3
School of Textiles, Donghua University, Shanghai, China
4
School of Textile and Design, University of Management and Technology, Lahore, Pakistan
5
Fujian Key Laboratory of Novel Functional Textile Fibers and Materials, Minjiang University, Fuzhou, China
Corresponding author:
Muhammad Awais Naeem, Key Laboratory of Eco-textiles, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China.
Email: mawaisnaeem@hotmail.com
!The Author(s) 2020
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DOI: 10.1177/1528083720925848
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Naeem et al. 991S
reinforced by banana fibers with bacterial cellulose deposited on their surface.
Whereas the lowest weight loss was also found for the same sample group. The highest
tensile strength (57.95 MPa) was found for SBC-BP/epoxy, followed by DBC-BP/epoxy
(54.73 MPa) and NBP/epoxy (45.32 MPa) composites, respectively. Composites rein-
forced by both types of hybrid banana fibers shown comparatively higher tensile per-
formance as compared with the neat banana peel fiber-epoxy composites, which can be
attributed to the high strength and stiffness associated with the bacterial cellulose.
Overall, this study suggests a successful and green route for the fabrication of natural
fiber-reinforced composites with improved properties such as tensile strength and
thermal stability.
Keywords
Bacterial cellulose, banana peel, natural fiber composites, biosynthesis, epoxy matrix
Introduction
Recently natural fibers have attracted much attention as reinforcement material
for the production of composites because of the desired attributes, which include
low density, less abrasiveness, biodegradability [1,2], lightweight, low cost, renew-
ability, abundant availability, and eco-friendliness [3]. So they are sometimes con-
sidered as a feasible alternative for expensive, non-renewable, and abrasive
synthetic fibers [4]. Due to their cellular and hollow structure, natural fibers exhibit
high specific stiffness and strength but dimensional inconsistency, lower linear
thermal coefficient of expansion (LTCE), water sensitivity, mechanical degrada-
tion during processing, and low compatibility with many hydrophobic polymeric
matrices are among their commonly known drawbacks [5,6]. Because excessive
fiber shrinkage as compared to the polymer matrix contributes to poor fiber-
matrix interface and ultimately reduces the overall mechanical performance of
the composites [7]. Surface treatment and modification of natural fibers are essen-
tial to improve the interaction between reinforcing fibers and the polymer matrix.
Regardless of their drawbacks, the commercial use of some natural fiber compo-
sites in non-load-bearing applications has notably increased [8,9]. Several research-
ers studied the usage of natural fibers (banana, flax, coir, jute, etc.) for the
fabrication of thermoplastic composites, to be used in automotive, packaging as
well as construction industries [10,11].
Banana is the second largest produced fruit of the world’s total fruit production.
The food industry generates an enormous amount of waste in the form of the
unripe banana peel (BP), which is eventually utilized as cattle feedstock.
Researchers have recently studied the BP waste, to find their more productive
use including ethanol production, fiber extraction, and others [12,13]. Banana
fiber is commonly obtained from the pseudostem of the banana plant
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(Musa sapientum) and is described to possess relatively high cellulose content
(66%), high tensile and flexural strength, biodegradability, rotting resistance,
and abundant availability [11]. Among the previously reported chemical techni-
ques, alkalization is known to effectively enhance the surface roughness of banana
fibers, which results in better mechanical interlocking and the amount of cellulose
exposed on the fiber surface [14]. Little work has been reported on the biological
treatments, which involve the use of naturally occurring microorganisms, to
improve the surface roughness of banana fibers whereas hardly any study is avail-
able on the fabrication of nanocomposites prepared by banana fibers extracted
from peels [13].
Composites structures are made by combining two or more distinct materials,
and their engineering performance is considerably higher than that of any individ-
ual component. Poor interfacial adhesion among the individual components might
result in inferior mechanical properties of composites since the stress transfer to the
reinforcement phase through the matrix phase would not be very effective [15–17].
Bacterial cellulose (BC) secreted by Gluconobacter xylinum is known to be a sus-
tainable and promising biodegradable nanofibrous extracellular material [18,19].
Due to a high degree of polymerization, high crystallinity and higher molecular
orientation BC exhibits higher thermal stability with LTCE of only 0.1 10
6
K
1
, as well strength and stiffness are higher as compared to cellulose derived
from plants [20,21]. Owing to its excellent tensile properties, several studies in
the recent past have discussed the fabrication methods of BC-based hybrids and
nanocomposites for various applications [17,18,22–26].
BC-based nanocomposites and hybrid structures can be prepared through a
fermentation process (biosynthesis) in the presence of natural fibers. Numerous
hydroxyl groups present on the surfaces of cellulosic fibers form a strong interac-
tion with BC through hydrogen bonding [5,27].
Because of its low LTCE, BC could potentially improve the thermal stability of
hybrid structures. Coating of BC on the surfaces of banana fibers could be a
possible solution to the abovementioned problem of fiber shrinkage during thermal
processing of the nanocomposites. Banana fibers were surface coated with BC
using two different techniques, namely in-situ self-assembly, and simple deposition
approach. The tensile properties of randomly oriented modified short banana
fiber/epoxy nanocomposites were investigated and compared with those of pristine
banana fiber/epoxy composites.
Experimental
Materials
BPs were obtained from banana fruit (Musa sepientum genre), which were locally
purchased. Banana fibers were extracted from previously, using the previously
reported method [13]. The thermosetting epoxy resin used in this study had a
molecular weight of 395–430; the content of epoxy groups was 20%–21% and
Naeem et al. 3
Naeem et al. 993S
the density was 1.36 g/mL. The curing agent was polyethylene polyamine. The
stoichiometric ratio of the epoxy and hardener was maintained at 3:1 according
to the manufacturer’s specification.
Extraction of fibers from BP waste
BPs obtained from moderately ripened banana fruit (Musa sepientum genre) were
used for this study and banana fibers were extracted through the wet retting
method, as previously reported [13]. Briefly, the residual inner pulpy layer (meso-
carp) of the peels was scraped out manually with the help of a blunt knife and peels
were immersed in boiling water for 5 min at 120C. The retting was carried out in
0.05 M NaOH(aq) solution for 12 h under agitated condition. Afterward, fibers
were manually extracted and soaked with 1% NaOH(aq) for 30 min, followed by
1% acrylic acid for 1 h at ambient temperature. Such fiber treatment might help to
disrupt hydrogen bonding in the network structure, thereby increasing the surface
roughness. It also causes the removal of a certain amount of lignin, wax, and oils
covering the external layer of the fiber surface. Later on, fibers were washed with
distilled water to remove any unwanted adhered impurities, followed by drying in a
hot air oven at 70C for 24 h. The optical and microscopic images of fibers are
shown in Figure S1a and S2a, respectively. These fibers are referred to as neat
banana peel (NBP) fibers.
Surface coating with BC
In-situ self-assembly of BC on NBP fibers. In-situ surface modification method studied
in our previous research works [13,24] (as shown in Figure 1(a)) was taken advan-
tage of, to deposit nanosized BC on the surface of BP fibers. Briefly, 7 g dried BP
fibers (each 12 cm long) were added in Hestrin and Schramm culture medium
(0.6% Glucose, 0.8% Bacto peptone, 2.5% Yeast) prepared in distilled water,
and the system was autoclaved at 121C for 30 min. The initial pH set at 5.0
was maintained throughout the fermentation process. Gluconobacter strain was
used to inoculate the culture medium and fermentation was continued under agi-
tated environment (100 rpm) at 30C for 3 days. Based on pre-experiment agitated
environment helps to reduce the agglomeration of the fibers and facilitates BC
nanofibrils coating on fibers’ surface. However, BC modified banana fibers still
require to be isolated manually after the fermentation process is finished. Once the
incubation period completed, a layer of BC nanofibrils was self-assembled on
banana fibers’ surface, forming the BC-BP fibers hybrid structure. Harvested mod-
ified fibers were immersed into 0.1 M NaOH for 4 h at 80C to get rid of microbial
contaminants and soluble polysaccharides [28,29]. Later, BC coated fibers were
washed with de-ionized water and dried at 80C for 12 h. As-prepared modified
fibers with a coated layer of BC are referred to as self-assembled BC-banana peel
(SBC-BP) fibers. Optical and microscopic images of BC coated fibers are shown in
Figure S1b and S2b, respectively. BC loading fraction on BP fibers was found to be
around 79% by weight. The gluconobacter favorably grows on some natural fibers
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and hydrophilic polymer surfaces when immersed in a culture medium, as com-
pared to cultivation in pure culture [30]. It has also been reported that natural
fibers, when incorporated into aqueous dispersions of BC will absorb water, draw-
ing in the water and BC nanofibrils from the culture medium. In this way, micro-
fibrillated BC gets filtered against the surface of the fibers, resulting in BC coated
fibers.
Deposition of microfibrillated-BC on BP fibers. To prepare another set of BC coated
banana fiber samples, microfibrillated-BC was deposited on the surface of fibers.
To start with, BC pellicles were cultivated using previously reported procedure
[24]. Briefly, above mentioned (Hestrin and Schramm) culture medium contained
in conical flasks was inoculated using Acetobacter xylinum bacterial strain and
incubated statically at 30C for 5 days. Harvested BC pellicles were immersed in
NaOH for 48 h and subsequently, washed with de-ionized water to neutralize the
pH and remove the impurities. Small pieces of wet BC pellicles (14 g; equivalent
dry weight: 0.25 g) chopped with the help of sharp knife were added into 500 mL
of de-ionized water and milled using a mechanical blender (1000 rpm) for 5 min. In
this way, a dispersion of 0.05 wt% BC was prepared, which was later subjected to
high-power ultrasonic treatment for 3 min. After that, 7 g of dried neat BP fibers
were introduced into the aqueous dispersion and left for 3 days at room temper-
ature under an agitated environment (as shown in Figure 1(b)).
Figure 1. Schematic of BC-BP hybrid fibers produced through in-situ biosynthesis (a) and slurry
deposition method (b).
Naeem et al. 5
Naeem et al. 995S
As-prepared microfibrillated-BC coated BP fibers were removed from the solution
and dried at 80C for 12 h. As-prepared modified fibers are denoted as deposited
BC banana peel (DBC-BP) fibers. BC loading fraction on BP fibers was found to
be around 80% by weight.
Fabrication of BC-BP fibers/epoxy composites. As-prepared SBC-BP fibers, DBC-BP
fibers as well as NBP fibers were chopped into short fibers of 10–15 mm length
and dried in the oven at 80C for 4 h, and then dried in a vacuum oven at 60C for
1 h before the preparation of nanocomposites. Previously reported composite fab-
rication method was followed BF reinforced epoxy composite, as shown in sche-
matic Figure 2 [31,32].
For each sample type, randomly oriented short fibers (with volume fraction of
10% by weight of composite) were mixed with epoxy by mechanical stirring for
10 min at room temperature. Hardener was added into the mixture while stirring
gently, to minimize the formation of air bubbles. The mold was cleaned, and
release wax was applied. Above mixture was poured into the mold and BF rein-
forced epoxy composite sheets were formed by hand layup technique. After curing
in an air oven at 30C for 24 h, NBP, SBC-BP, and DBC-BP fibers reinforced/
epoxy nanocomposite sheets were obtained, each having thickness of 3 mm. To
prepare the samples for mechanical testing, dimensions were selected following
ASTMD 638 and ASTM D 256 for tensile and impact tests, respectively. To pre-
pare pure epoxy specimens for testing, the epoxy/hardner mixture was directly
poured into the mold having dog-bone shaped cavity and cured at room temper-
ature. All the specimens were conditioned at 21 C and 65% relative humidity
(RH) for 72 h prior to analyzing their tensile and other properties [31].
Characterization
Morphological analysis (SEM)
Morphology of the fractured samples after tensile testing was examined using scan-
ning electron microscope (SEM). Prior to SEM, the fiber samples were coated with a
Figure 2. Schematic of BPF reinforced/epoxy composite fabrication process.
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thin film of gold/palladium through spray coating, and all the samples were fixed
onto SEM stubs. SEM was performed using a high-resolution field emission SEM
(SU1510-Hitachi). The accelerating voltage used was 5 kV.
X-ray diffraction analysis
The crystallinity index of neat and BC coated Banana fiber samples was evaluated
by X-ray using (Bruker-XS) diffractometer, Scans were collected under following
conditions: CuKaradiation with graphite monochromator, 4 kV, and 4 mA. The
patterns were obtained in the range of 10–70at 2h(angular interval: 2h/5 s).
The crystallinity index (CI) was calculated using equation (1), where Ic is the
maximum intensity of the lattice reflection, and I
am
is the minimum intensity of
X-ray scattering broad band due to the amorphous region of the samples. Segal’s
method [33] has been widely used for the natural fibers analysis [34].
CIð%Þ¼½ðIc IamÞ=Ic100 (1)
Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA)
Thermal behavior of BP fibers was analyzed before and after BC coating. About
4–5 mg of each fiber type was used for this purpose. To analyze the thermal
stability of nanocomposites, the specimens (8–10 mg) taken from each type of
nanocomposites were grinded and used for TGA. TGA test was performed
using a Perkin Elmer (TGA Q50/Q500) thermogravimetric analyzer. The heating
was carried out in a N
2
gas atmosphere with a flow rate of 20 mL and increasing
temperature by 10C from 40C to 800C. The weight loss and thermal properties
of the specimens were determined by the linked computer software program.
Mechanical testing
Mechanical properties of pure epoxy samples, neat and hybrid fibers/epoxy com-
posite samples were tested by universal material testing machine (Perfect
Instruments-PT990T). Three specimens were tested for each formulation to calcu-
late the statistical mean. Figure S3a,b show the optical images of samples before
and after testing. The test specimens were conditioned at 23C and 50% RH for
72 h before testing. The tensile test was performed until each specimen failed. The
tensile strength, breaking elongation, and tensile modulus were calculated. Elastic
modulus was determined from the slope of the stress–strain curve in the linear
strain region [35].
Naeem et al. 7
Naeem et al. 997S
Results and discussion
X-ray diffraction
The X-ray diffractograms of the neat and BC coated banana fibers are shown in
Figure 3. Two peaks were observed for both types of samples in a range of 2h¼16�
and 2h¼22�, which represent the cellulose crystallographic planes for I
101
, and I
002
.
As per superposition in the X-ray diagram, the similar signal characteristics of the
specimen fibers were seen [24,36].
The crystallinity index (CI) values calculated as per equation (1) were 15.75%,
27.55% and 25.17% for NBP, SBC-BP, and DBC-BP hybrid fibers respectively.
According to these results, the crystallinity index of hybrid fibers increased up to
about 11.8%, which can be a result of the high content of cellulose.
Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA)
Comparative thermal decomposition analysis of NBP, SBC-BP, DBC-BP fibers, as
well as their nanocomposites samples, was carried out in a programmed temperature
range of 40�C–800�C, as shown in Figure 4. It can be seen from Figure 4(a) that the
thermal degradation temperature of hybrid BP fibers increased as compared to the
NBP fibers. Whereas for BP fibers/epoxy nanocomposites, it was observed that there
is weight loss in all types of specimens as shown in Figure 4(b), which typically
occurs in most of the lignocellulosic fibers and their composites [37]. The thermal
stability was determined in terms of weight loss as a function of temperature.
Incorporation of BPF into the epoxy matrix improved the thermal stability as deg-
radation shifted towards higher temperatures, as evidenced by the TGA curves. The
initial low-temperature weight losses of natural fiber composites are due to the
Figure 3. XRD diffractograms of pure BC, NBP, and hybrid fiber samples.
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vaporization of absorbed moisture and the removal of solvent. The major weight
loss is attributed to the degradation and volatilization of epoxy along with the
reinforcement components. The hemicelluloses decompose mainly between 150�C
and 350�C, cellulose decomposes between 275�C and 350�C and lignin decomposes
between 250�C and 450�C. For BC coated hybrid fiber nanocomposites. For all
nanocomposite samples Decomposition of cellulose initiated at about 275�C and
the major weight loss occurred was in the range of 375�C–400�C.
The neat epoxy showed slightly lower thermal behavior than nanocomposites
and undergone thermal degradation that occurred between 300�C and 400�C. With
the addition of NBF, SBC-BP, and DBC-BP fibers, the TGA curves shifted to
higher temperatures. The improvement in the thermal stability could be attributed
to the interactions between the BC and the epoxy matrix, as BC might resist the
heat transfer to the epoxy matrix and slow down the decomposition of the epoxy
matrix.
Neat epoxy composites showed 69.79% weight loss at 385�C and the remaining
residue was 5.66%. All BF loaded composites showed a weight loss of 76.5% at the
temperature of 400�C and the final residue was 9.88%–14.49%, which might be
due to the lignin content of banana fibers. Hence, when exposed to higher temper-
atures, all BF fiber enforced/epoxy composite samples undergo weight loss due to
thermal decomposition of lignin, hemicellulose, pectin and the glycosidic linkages
present in cellulosic natural fibers [38]. The maximum thermal decomposition tem-
perature was obtained for DBC-BP nanocomposite with 405�C. The total weight
losses for the nanocomposites SBC-BP and DBC-BP 88.45% and 85.51% were
close to each other, while the lowest weight loss was found for DBC-BP compo-
sites. The addition of nanocellulose slightly improved the thermal stability,
although the degradation temperature was likely to increase, which is following
the findings of some other researchers [39].
Figure 4. (a) TGA plot of BP fibers before and after BC coating. (b) TGA plot of epoxy and BP
fibers/epoxy composites.
Naeem et al. 9
Naeem et al. 999S
SEM analysis
Surface morphology of NBP, SBC-BP, and DBC-BP fibers was analyzed, and
micrographs are shown in Figure 5(a) to (c), respectively. SEM analysis support
the observation that was obtained after the modification of BP fibers, that BC
coating altered the surface structure. From Figure 5(b), it was observed that BC
self-assembled on the surface of pure BP fiber making it bulky. Similarly for DBC-
BP fibers, the agglomerated BC film can be seen (Figure 5(c)).
Figure 6(a) to (c) shows the surface morphology and interface bonding of NBP,
SBC-BP, and DBC-BP fiber/epoxy nanocomposites, respectively. The surface
micrographs exhibit a good interface bonding between reinforcement and the
matrix. All types of composites showed a homogeneous surface structure without
many noticeable defects. It can be concluded that only de-bonding and fiber break-
age appear as the types of failures as observed during SEM of fractured surfaces.
Only in the case of NBP/Epoxy composite, de-bonding was observed as shown in
Figure 7(a). The improved mechanical performance of composites after fiber mod-
ification could be because of hydrogen bond and physical entanglement of BC
microfibril network. The strong interaction of BC with the banana fiber can be
Figure 5. (a)–(c) SEM micrographs for NBP, SBC-BP, and DBC-BP fibers, respectively.
10 Journal of Industrial Textiles 0(0)
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traced back to its hydroxyl groups that can form hydrogen bonds. As the stress is
transferred from matrix to the reinforcements, the fiber breakage takes place
instead of pull out without any signs of matrix cracking. Furthermore, the fracture
surface of the epoxy matrix shows a typical brittle fracture with river lines on it
which are marked with red arrows. These lines have been observed by other
researchers as well [32,40].
Tensile testing
Neat banana fiber and BC coated Banana fibers reinforced epoxy nanocomposites
were prepared and their mechanical properties were studied. The tensile properties
recorded for NBP fiber reinforced composites were inferior as compared to the
previously reported composites fabricated by Banana pseudo-stem and leaf fibers
[41,42], which indicates that banana fibers extracted from peels have comparatively
low quality. The results obtained also show that the tensile strength and tensile
modulus of both SBC-BP and DBC-BP hybrid fibers reinforced epoxy composites
Figure 6. (a)–(c) SEM micrographs for surface morphology of NBP, SBC-BP, and DBC-BP
nanocomposites, respectively.
Naeem et al. 11
Naeem et al. 1001S
was higher as compared to neat NBP fiber/epoxy nanocomposites as given in
Table 1. Furthermore, in comparison with the NBP fibers/epoxy composites, the
improved tensile strength of the hybrid fiber composites can be attributed to the
presence of BC. It indicates that hybrid fibers can help to increase the tensile
modulus of the epoxy-based composites as well as improve the thermal stability.
The highest tensile strength (57.95 MPa) was found for SBC-BP/epoxy, followed
by DBC-BP/epoxy (54.73 MPa) and NBP/epoxy (45.32 MPa) composites, respec-
tively. The highest value of tensile modulus recorded for DBC-BP fibers/Epoxy
composites (70.63 MPa) could be attributed to the coated layers of microfibrillated
BC.
The SEM images of neat BP and hybrid fiber epoxy nanocomposites after ten-
sile loading are shown in Figure 7. As the composite was fabricated using ran-
domly distributed fibers, hence the phenomenon of fiber breakage is due to the fact
that fibers are deeply embedded in the matrix. As the stress is transferred from
epoxy matrix to the fibers, the fiber breakage takes place instead of debonding or
pull out. In general, fibers, which have not been embedded deeply in the matrix,
Figure 7. (a)–(c) Tensile fracture micrographs for NBP, SBC-BP, and DBC-BP nanocomposites,
respectively.
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Table 1. Tensile testing results for nanocomposites.
Composite type
Tensile
strength
(MPa)
Standard
deviation (r)
Elongation at
break (%)
Standard
deviation (r)
Tensile
modulus
(MPa)
Standard
deviation (r)
Impact
strength
(kJm
–2
)
Standard
deviation
(r)
Pure epoxy resin 11.14 0.242 72.11 1.420 11.09 0.535 252.04 1.951
NBP fibers/epoxy 45.32 0.721 42.11 1.327 58.19 0.933 284.19 2.988
SBC-BP fibers/epoxy 57.95 1.174 40.75 1.792 67.11 1.487 287.75 3.604
DBC-BP fibers/epoxy 54.73 1.032 38.22 1.404 70.63 1.593 284.19 4.287
Naeem et al. 13
Naeem et al. 1003S
show debonding. For NBP/Epoxy fracture micrograph, poor fiber to matrix inter-
face can be observed due to visible gaps between fiber and epoxy matrix, which
might have caused poor interfacial bonding and affected the mechanical properties
of resulting composites as shown in Figure 7(a). For BC coated SBC-BP and
DBC-BP hybrid fiber/epoxy nanocomposites, comparatively better fiber to
matrix interface was found as shown in Figure 7(b) and (c), which might lead to
comparatively better mechanical performance.
Conclusion
This work deals with the successful incorporation of BC coated BP fibers to fab-
ricate natural fiber-epoxy composites. The coating of BC on fiber surface helped to
achieve better thermal stability and mechanical performance. Both tensile strength
and modulus of epoxy composites get enhanced by the addition of BP fibers,
furthermore fibers modified through the in-situ self-assembly approach present
better results. The maximum tensile strength and modulus for modified BP fiber
reinforced/epoxy composite was found to be 57.95 MPa and 70.63 MPa, respec-
tively. For all mechanical tests, evidence of fiber fracture is observed. Whereas,
only pure BF reinforced/epoxy composite shown the poor fiber/matrix interface.
The mechanical properties of BP fiber reinforced composites were found inferior as
compared to the previously reported composites fabricated by Banana pseudo-
stem and leaf fibers. Further studies can help to find the optimum ratio of fiber
to matrix to define the best mechanical properties. It is possible to use BP fiber
reinforced epoxy composites as a substitute material for automotive seat backs,
bolsters, floors, and other non-load bearing application. Hence, this study suggests
an alternative source to obtain natural fibers, which can be used to fabricate low
cost and environmentally friendly composites with improved properties.
Declaration of conflicting interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, author-
ship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, author-
ship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the National First-Class
Discipline Program of Light Industry Technology and Engineering (LITE2018-21) and the
111 Project (B17021).
ORCID iDs
Muhammad Awais Naeem https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6356-1935
Muhammad Wasim https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7755-5253
Amjad Farooq https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0318-2597
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Supplemental material
Supplemental material is available for this article online.
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