Introduction:

Natural fibers already have been used the first time 3000 years ago in composite
systems in the ancient Egypt, where straw and clay were mixed together to build
walls. Over the last decade, polymer composites reinforced with natural fibers have
received ever increasing attention, both from the academic world and from various
industries. There is a wide variety of different natural fibers which can be applied
as reinforcement or fillers. An organigram with a classification of the various fibers
is presented in Figure :

The most important types of natural fibers used in composite materials are flax,
hemp, jute, kenaf, and sisal due to their properties and availability. Jute is an
important best fiber with a number of advantages. Jute has high specific properties,
low density, less abrasive behavior to the processing equipment, good dimensional
stability and harmlessness. Jute textile is a low cost eco-friendly product and is
abundantly available, easy to transport and has superior drivability 2 and moisture
retention capacity. It is widely being used as a natural choice for plant mulching
and rural road pavement construction. The biodegradable and low priced jute
products merge with the soil after using providing nourishment to the soil. Being
made of cellulose, on combustion, jute does not generate toxic gases. Due to jutes
low density combined with relatively stiff and strong behavior, the specific
properties of jute fiber can compare to those of glass and some other fibers.

Jute Fiber Composites:

Jute, sisal, banana, and coir the major sources of natural fibers, are grown in many
parts of the world. Some of them have aspect ratios (ratio of length to diameter)
1000 and can be woven easily. These fibers are extensively used for cordage,
sacks, fishnets, matting and rope, and as filling for mattresses and cushions (Eg,
rubberized coir). Cellulosic fibers are obtained from different parts of the plants.
Eg, Jute is obtained from stem. The biodegradable and low priced jute products
merge with the soil after using, providing nourishment to the soil. Being made of
cellulose, on combustion, jute does not generate toxic gases. Due to jute's low
density combined with relatively stiff and strong behavior, the specific properties
of jute fiber can compare to those of glass and some other fibers.
Recent reports indicate that plant based natural fibers can very well be used as
reinforcement in polymer composites, replacing to some extent more expensive
and non renewable synthetic fibers such as Glass. The maximum tensile, impact
and flexural strengths for natural fiber reinforced plastic composites reported so far
are 104.0 MN/m2 (Jute - Epoxy), 22.0 kJ/m2 (Jute - Polyester) and 64.0 MN/m2
(Banana - Polyester) respectively.
Different geometries of these fibers, both singly and in combination with glass
have been employed for fabrication of uni-axial, bi-axial and randomly oriented
composites. Amongst these various lingo cellulosic fibers, jute contains a fairly
high proportion of stiff natural cellulose. Several studies of fiber composition and
morphology have found that cellulose content and micro fibril angle tend to control
the mechanical properties of cellulosic fibers. Higher cellulose content and lower
micro fibril angle results in higher work of fracture in impact testing.
Comparison of properties of jute fiber with other fibers

Types of Jute Composite:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Polypropylene composites
Epoxy composites
Thermoset composites
Thermoplastic composites
Chemical composition
6. Polyester composites

1. Polypropylene Composite Manufacturing Process:

Polypropylene composite systems, the specimens were prepared by

two steps: compounding and then injection molding.
The materials consist of jute yarn from Spinnerij Blancquaert NV and
polypropylene.
Other components include as coupling agents maleic anhydride
grafted polypropylenes (MAHgPP).
Three kinds of MAHgPP were used for pre-investigation.

2. Epoxy Composites Manufacturing Process:

The generic term epoxy resins describes a class of thermosetting resins
prepared by the ring-opening polymerization of compounds containing an
average of more than one epoxy group per molecule.
Epoxy resins traditionally are made by reacting epichlorohydrin with bisphenol A, which are linear polymers that cross-link, forming thermosetting
resins basically by the reaction with the hardeners.
In order to modify the properties of fiber and then the composites, alkali and
some chemical treatments were investigated.
Before these treatments, the fiber had to be de-waxed to remove the weaving
size including potato starch and waxes.

3. Thermoset Composites Manufacturing Process: