Development of Biobased Composites of Structural Quality
Abstract
Highly biobased composites with properties and costs rivaling those consisting of
synthetic constituents are a goal of much current research. The obvious material choices,
vegetable oil based resins and natural fibers, present the challenges of poor resin properties and
weak fiber/matrix bonding, respectively. Conventional methods of overcoming poor resin
quality involve the incorporation of additives, which dilutes the resulting composite’s bio-content
and increases cost. To overcome these limitations while maintaining high bio-content and low
cost, epoxidized sucrose soyate is combined with surface-treated flax fiber to produce
biocomposites. These composites are fabricated using methods emphasizing scalability and
efficiency, for cost effectiveness of the final product. This approach resulted in the successful
production of biocomposites having properties that meet or exceed those of conventional
pultruded members. These properties, such as tensile and flexural strengths of 223 and 253 MPa,
respectively, were achieved by composites having around 85% bio-content.