Arun Kumar
Independent Researcher
India
Abstract
The increasing demand for sustainable materials in the automotive industry has accelerated research into biodegradable composites reinforced with natural fibers. This study explores the integration of natural fibers such as jute, hemp, flax, and sisal into polymer matrices for automotive interior applications. The objective is to evaluate the mechanical, thermal, and environmental performance of these composites compared to conventional synthetic fiber-reinforced materials. Experimental investigations were carried out on natural fiber-reinforced biodegradable polymer composites, analyzing tensile strength, flexural strength, impact resistance, and biodegradability. Statistical analysis highlights significant improvements in environmental impact without severely compromising mechanical properties. The results indicate that natural fiber composites possess promising potential to replace synthetic composites in automotive interiors, contributing to lightweight, eco-friendly vehicle designs while maintaining regulatory standards. This study provides critical insights into material selection, processing methods, and performance optimization for sustainable automotive applications.
Keywords
Natural fibers, biodegradable composites, automotive interiors, mechanical properties, environmental sustainability, polymer matrix, jute, hemp, flax.
REFERENCES
- Thyavihalli, Y. G., Rangappa, S. M., Parameswaranpillai, J., & Siengchin, S. (2019). Natural fibers as sustainable and renewable resource for development of eco-friendly composites: A comprehensive review. Frontiers in Materials, 6, 226. frontiersin.org
- Peças, P., Carvalho, H., Salman, H., & Leite, M. (2018). Natural fibre composites and their applications: A review. Journal of Composites Science, 2(4), 66. mdpi.com
- Ma, Q., Wu, S., & Xue, B. (2015). A review on natural fiber reinforced polymer composite and its applications. Advances in Materials Science and Engineering, 2015, Article ID 243947. onlinelibrary.wiley.com
- Sarker, F., Potluri, P., Afroj, S., Koncherry, V., Novoselov, K. S., & Karim, N. (2019). Ultra-high performance of nano-engineered graphene-based natural jute fiber composites. arXiv 1905.00750. arxiv.org
- Regazzi, A., Corn, S., Ienny, P., & Bergeret, A. (2018). Coupled hydro-mechanical aging of short flax fiber reinforced composites. arXiv 1804.10137.
- Jalili, M. M., Mousavi, S. Y., & Pirayeshfar, A. S. (2015). Investigating the acoustical properties of carbon fiber-, glass fiber-, and hemp fiber-reinforced polyester composites. arXiv 1511.04543. arxiv.org
- Pickering, K. L., Efendy, M. G. A., & Le, T. M. (2016). A review of recent developments in natural fibre composites and their mechanical performance. Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, 83, 98–112. mdpi.com
- Yan, L., Chouw, N., & Jayaraman, K. (2014). Flax fibre and its composites—a review. Composites Part B: Engineering, 56, 296–317. mdpi.com
- Remmert, M. (2018). Plant-based composite materials for automotive: They exist and are ready for prime time. SPE Automotive. speautomotive.com
- Biocomposite. (2025, June 19). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from the “Flax applications in automotive interiors” section. en.wikipedia.org
