Utilization of Coconut Coir and Bamboo Fiber as a Cement-Bonded

Particle Board

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

Nature and Importance of the study

Wood is one of the most important natural resources on

earth and plays a vital role in the lives of every human being.
It is used in making furniture, pulp, paper, fiber board,
plywood, and also has a value for wood construction. For
developing countries like Philippines, wood is continuosly
depleting due to widespread deforestation brough about by a
significant increase in construction activities and demand for
wood products. Because of this, it is therefore imperative to use
alternative materials for wood and utilize renewable, abundant
and sustainable non-woody resources like coconut coir and bamboo
fiber in order to lessen the continuos depletion of wood.

Agricultural industry brought so much residues as a

substitute for wood fabrication of panel products has become
dominant in the industry of making boards for it may be an
alternative to timber. However, people are mostly unaware of this
technology of utilizing agricultural wastes and recycling them
into useful and sustainable materials. The Philippines is an
agricultural country in which 40% of its land area is intended
for agricultural use. Sadly, the wastes that are derived from
different agricultural producta just go to dump sites and
landfills. It is a missed oppurtunity as a proper management of
thse agricultural waste could generate lots of employment,
increase the earning of farmers and can also provide other
business oppurtunities and services.

Aladenola et al. (2008) claimed that using raw materials in

the production of cement bonded boards would start a wide
research study in finding and translating other available
agricultural remainders to a more valuable product. Cement-
bonded particle board can be use for a varities of purpose such
as office and residential furniture, soundproof, home decking,
ceiling, roofing, and shuttering, cabinets, partitioning,
cladding stair treads, underlaying floor, table, shelving, store
pictures, wall bracing, ceiling boarding, constructions in the
home, sliding doors, kitchen shelves, interior designs, exam pad,
photo lamination, low cost cabin, peaker box, bulletin boards,
thermal insulation, and other industrial product (Atoyebi et al.,
2018). Moreover, Akinyemi et al.,(2017) concluded that unlike
other wood-based materials like drywall and plywood, this kind of
material is considered one-hundred percent inorganic and
therefore will be no organic matter that will promote mold, rot
shrinkage, and decomposition. Among other typical cement bonded
boards, cement fiber or natural fiber like coconut coir anf
bamboo fiber which acts as reinforcement to cement. Although it
is not totallt waterproof, it has, however, an excellent drying
property and is highly resistant in absorbing moisture.

Objectives of the Study

The objectives of the study were as follows:

1. To determine the physical properties of bamboo and coconut

coir fiber cement– bonded board specifically its density, water
absorption and thickness swelling.

2. To determine the bamboo and coconut coir fiber cement–bonded

board specifically its nail head pull--through strength.

3. To determine which among the ratios of bamboo and coconut coir

fiber will yield the best result.

Time and Place of the Study

This study will be conduct in Barangay Bancuro,  Naujan,

Oriental Mindoro. This study will take place from May to July of
the year 2022.

Scope and Delimitations

This study focused on the utilization of bamboo fiber and

coconut coir as main material in making cement fiber board. For
bamboo fiber, the researchers used bambusa blumeanan – a
scientific name for spiny bamboo and are locally known as
“kawayang-tinik”. The length of the fiber was maintained at 50
millimeters. Coconut coir, on the other hand, was obtained from a
coconut tree (cocos nucifera). The researchers used the brown
coir that came from the old or mature ripe coconuts and were cut
into 50 millimeters length. This study was limited to the
analysis of three experimental percent inclusions (1.3%, 2.2% and
3.2%) of bamboo and coconut coir fibers with water-- cement ratio
of 2:1. It was also limited to the following tests: density,
flexural strength test, thickness swelling and nail head pull--
through.

Significance of the Study

The findings of this study benefits the following:

1. Community

This research will provide valuable information in turning

agricultural wastes into useful material which redounds to more
opportunities for employment, additional earnings for the farmers
and other service and business opportunities for the people.

2. Environment

It is hoped that the research findings and suggested cement

fiber board can help the environment by lessening the
agricultural wastes and preserving natural wood reserves. This
research can also be a basis for future studies on developing
alternative materials for wood and wood products.

3. Construction industry

This research will also help the construction industry by

providing them an alternative construction material which is
comparable to commercially available cement bonded boards but at
a lower production cost which will redound to a higher profit.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

For better clarifications and understanding of the study,

the following terms are conceptually and operationally defined:

Bamboo fiber. This refers to the cellulosic fiber that is

regenerated from bamboo plant. In the study, bamboo fibers has a
high natural malleable and flexural strength. It also has the
thinness and whiteness close to finely bleached viscose and has
strong durability,stability, high absorbency and firmness.

Coconut coir. This refers to the fibrous natural byproduct of

coconuts, prized as a growing medium for its ability to hold
water. In the study, this pertains as the seed- hair fiber
extracted from the thick outer shell or husk of the coconut.

Cement bonded particleboard. This refers to the  combination of

cement and reinforcing fibers formed into sheets, of varying
thickness that are typically used as a tile backing board. In the
study, this is composed of wood elements onded together with an
adhesive under heat and pressure (F.A Kamke,2004)

Water absorption. This refers to the amount of water absorbed by

a material and is calculated as the ratio of the weight of water
absorbed to the weight of the dry material. In the study, water
absorption is a method of determining the water- tightness of
concrete.

Drop Test. This refers to a test designed to examine the

structural integrity of a product and usually involve an object
being dropped from a predefined height onto a second object or
surface. In the study, this is the simplest way to test the
strength of the specific object by dropping it from a given
height onto a standardized hard surface.

Density. This refers to the amount of matter in something that is

shown by the relationship between its weight and size. In the
study, the formula for density is d=M/V where d is density M is
mass and V is the volume. Density is commonly expressed in unit
of grams per cubic centimetre or kilograms per cubic metre.

Thickness swelling. This refers as an important property that

represents the stability performance of composite.

CHAPTER  2
 Literature Review

This chapter primarily presents the different researches,

studies, and related literature, which have significant bearings
on the variables included in the research. This will give ideas
about different waste and what will be the contribution of this
waste material in concrete. Furthermore, related literature will
assist the researchers in becoming acquainted with the existing
information in the field or in which the researcher will perform
their research and in recognizing the field's limitations. This
study's related literature includes journals, articles, and other
thesis, both international and domestic, that are thought to be
useful in raising knowledge about this study.

BAMBOO FIBER AS CEMENT-BONDED PARTICLE BOARD

Sulastiningsih, et al., (1998) suggested overcoming low

natural durability of bamboo to be used in the manufacture of
cement -bonded board. Although vulnerable to environment
degradation due to insect attack Bambooplant absorbednitrogen and
carbondioxide in the air (Das &Billha, 2012). Matured bamboo
composites would be durablewith organic binders in resisting
fungi attack, heat and fire (Maloney 1977). Though compatibility
of bamboos with cement varied both from the bottom to the upper
part ofthe bamboo culm and among Indonesian bamboo (Dendrocalamus
asper, Gigantochloaapus, G. pseudoarundinacea and G. Levis)
species were noted in hydration of cement studies
(Sulastiningsih, et al., 1998).In the Philippines, about 21 out
of 62 species of bamboo (Growing Bamboo forMoney and Health
Environment, 2011) were endemic to the country and the rest were
introduced species. The twelve priority species to choose based
on their potentials fordevelopment in the Philippines were:
Bambusablumeana(Kawayantinik), Bambusaolhamii (Oldham bamboo),
DendroCalamusmerriliana (Bayog), Bambusavulgaris (Kawayan
killing), Dendrocalamusasper(Giantbamboo),
Dendrocalamuslatiflorus (Machiku), Dendrocalamusstrictus
(Calcutta bamboo), Gigantochloaatter (Kayali), Gigantochloalevis
(Bolo), Schizostachyumlima (Anos), Schizostachyumlumampao (Buho),
Thyrsostachyssiamensis (Thailand bamboo).

Kawayantinik(Bambusablumeana),Bayog (Bambusamerriliana),Giant
Bamboo. (Dendrocalamusasper), Bolo(Gigantochloa levis) were
locally potential for constructionand alternative for steel
reinforced concrete and could grew in various types of soil
andterrain conditions. With tensile strength up to 370 N/mm as
steel substitute, the ratio oftensile strength to specific weight
of bamboo was six times greater than that of steel(Amada et al.,
1997) desirable for tension and compression. Under the FRI-RP-
GermanProject in 1988,bamboo resourcing accounted for an estimate
of 10, 730 million linearmeters, most of which were represented
by climbing bamboos totaling 8,318 linearmeters. The two out of
five species covered in the survey were Schizostachyumlima
with27.2 million culms and Schizostachyumlumampao with 172.0
million culms both naturallyabundant (Bamboo Master Plan,1997).

Cement-bonded particle board

Cement bonded particle boards (CBPB) are traditionally made of

wood fibres, cement and water, usually with some additives to
speed up the bonding process, in traditional production caused by
hydration of cement. CBPB boards so far, due i.e. to economic
reasons are only used to a very limited extent, compared to
common boards with organic binder (plywood, OSB). However, the
CBPB boards have very interesting properties regarding stiffness,
fire, acoustics and resistance to termites and microorganisms
(Marteinsson et al. 2018).The CBPB boards are of interest as
these have good fire protection properties, along with better
resistance to humidity fluctuations than most comparable boards
on the market. The inorganic binding material (cement) gives
better resistance to microorganisms than boards with organic
binders. The boards are rather heavy compared to other types of
boards used in construction and therefore often used for
specialized applications indoors and outdoors.Cement Bonded
Particle Board is made from a mixture of wood particles and
cement. Cement board adds impact resistance and strength to the
wall surface. It is not actually waterproof, but it is highly
resistant to absorbing moisture and has excellent drying
properties. One major disadvantage of cement board is the weight
per square foot which is quite high and makes its handling by one
person difficult.

COCONUT COIR

The Philippines being a tropical nation, has an abundance

of sources of coconut, and it belongs to the worlds largest
procedures of products from coconuts such as oils, furniture, and
more. The Visayas was known as the center of coconut production
of land, having a lot of coconut trees, the people around there
primarily depend their livelihood on it. Based on some studies
coconuy coir is possibly a useful replacement in the production
of composite materials for housing construction, such as
concrete.
Natural insulating materials, such as coir have received
increasing attention due to their low dry density, good
mechanical properties, easy processing, stability, low health
impacts, availability, low price, and reduced environmental
impacts due to their production, biodegradability, recyclability,
and waste management practices (Asasutjarit et al., 2007).

Thickness Swelling

The same procedure was used to determine the thickness

swelling, using the same samples at the same water soak period.
The thickness of the cement-based boards was measured using a
veneer caliper before and after water soaking. The thickness
swelling was expressed as the percentage of increase in thickness
of the cement-based board over the original thickness as
expressed below, where TS is the thickness swelling (%), T1 is
the thickness of the board after water immersion (mm), and T0 is
the initial thickness of the board (mm).

Density

According to Martha Marie et al., (2002)Density is a physical

property of matter that expresses a relationship of mass to
volume. The more mass an object contains in a given space, the
more dense it is. It is important to remember, though, that this
relationship is not just about how closely packed together the
atoms of an element or the molecules of a compound are. Density
is also affected by the atomic mass of an element or compound.
Since different substances have different densities, density
measurements are a useful means for identifying
substances.Density can sometimes be confused in our minds with
weight because the denser of two equal-volume objects will be
heavier. Remember, though, that it is the relationship between
mass and volume that determines density and not volume or mass
alone, or even how closely packed the atoms or molecules are
Anthony Carpi et al., (2002)