Sustainable composites

Composite#8
 Sustainability

Brundtland Commission Report (1987)

The World Commission on Environment and
Development suggested the following definition of
Sustainable Development:
"Meeting the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs."
 Sustainability
• Bruntland emphasised the need to balance:
– economics
– environment
– social
– governance
• Now generally reduced to “Triple E”
– Economy
– Ecology
– Equity
 Sustainable composites
This lecture
describes materials from natural sources, without
prejudice to the results of any future Quantitative Life
Cycle Analysis (QLCA)
which may (or may not)
make the case for these materials
being more environmentally-friendly
than equivalent systems manufactured from man-made
fibres and synthetic resins.
 Typical fibre properties
• The data on the next three slides is from:
– NL Hancox, Fibre Composite Hybrid Materials,
Elsevier Applied Science, Barking, 1981.

– TJ Reinhart, Engineered Materials Handbook 1:

Composites, ASM International, 1987.

– Chand et al, Journal of Materials Science,

1988, 23(2), 381-387.
• where a range is given in the references,
the arithmetic mean is shown in the graph
 Density of fibres

Bast (plant stem) Leaf Seed Animal Synthetic

1500
kg/m3
Flax
Hemp
Jute
Pineapple
Sisal
Cotton
Coir
Silk
Glass
Aramid
Carbon
 Young’s moduli of fibres
Bast (plant stem)
Leaf
Seed
100 GPa
Animal
Synthetic
Flax
Hemp
Jute
Pineapple
Sisal
Cotton
Coir
Silk
Glass
Aramid
Carbon
3 GPa
Strengths of fibres
Bast (plant stem)
Leaf
Seed
2 GPa
Animal
Synthetic

1 GPa
Pineapple

Carbon
Aramid
Cotton
Coir .
Hemp

Glass
Sisal
Jute
Flax

Silk
 Fibre specific moduli and strengths
• Specific value is (modulus or strength)/density
– i.e. (MN/m2)/(kg/m3) = MN.m/kg
Modulus Strength

Flax 65.8 0.55

Hemp 46.1 0.61

Jute 39.5 0.57

Glass 27.8 1.33

Aramid 86.1 1.92

Carbon 109.9 1.40

Aluminium 25.5
Flax/Linseed (Linum usitatissimum L.)

• Mike Felstead: Flax and linseed fibres as reinforcement for

epoxy composites,
BEng Composites, June 1995.

E-modulus UTS Elongation

Materials (GPa) (MPa) (%)
Q: Queens flax 134±55 141±66 1.14±0.4
S: Silsoe flax 117±78 93±53 1.23±0.51
H: Seale-Hayne linseed 79±53 71±50 1.36±0.49
 Flax

Flax and linseed are

cultivars grown for
fibre or seed
respectively

Flax Field, Providence by Hazel Barker

From http://www.art.com/asp/sp-asp/_/pd--10125356/Flax_Field_Providence.htm
 Flax: growth stages
• 12 distinct growth stages in the flax plant:
– Growth stages 1 & 2
• cotyledon (seed leaf) to growing point emerged
– Growth stages 3 & 4
• 1st pair of true leaves unfolded to third pair of true leaves unfolded
– Growth stage 5
• stem extension
– Growth stages 6, 7, & 8
• buds visible to full flower
– Growth stages 9, 10 & 11
• late flower to brown capsule
– Growth stage 12
• seed ripe
 FLAX: growth stages
Life cycle of the flax plant consists of
• a 45-60 day vegetative period,
• a 15-25 day flowering period, and
• a maturation period of 30 to 40 days
J A Turner “Linseed Law” BASF (UK) Limited, 1987 via http://www.flaxcouncil.ca/images
 Flax: from plant to fabric
• harvest (combining or pulling)
• retting (dew-, wet-, stand- or enzyme-retting)
– enzymes (e.g. pectinase digests pectin binder)
• decortication (scutching)
– Hammer mill
– Fluted rollers
– Willower
• cleaning (removal of shive)
• carding (brushing/combing aligns fibres) > sliver
• spinning (twisting binds fibres) > yarn/filament
• weaving, braiding, knitting, etc
 Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.)
• annual plant native to central Asia and
grown in China over 4500 years ago.
• probably reached central Europe in the Iron Age (circa 400
BC)
• evidence of growth in the UK
by the Anglo-Saxons (800-1000 AD).
• does not require fertiliser, herbicides or pesticides to grow
well
• in suitable warm conditions,
it can grow to 4 metres in just 12 weeks.
 Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.)
Disadvantage?
• some strains of this plant are ...
psychotropic
• those good for the above are not best for fibre
• ... but good fibre plant can be used to
disguise plants grown for drugs
• new strains of fibre plant with distinctive
leaf colours are under development
 Henry Ford car 1941
hemp and flax
fibres used in
resin matrix
composites for
body of Henry
Ford car able
to withstand
ten-times the
impact on an
equivalent
metal panel
Video
 Image from http://www.chanvre-info.ch/info/en/About-Henry-Ford-s-Car.html
Henry Ford tries out his first car
made from plant based materials
"the axe bounced, and there was no dent"
 Jute
Corchorus capsularis. L. - white jute
C. olitorius L. - Tossa jute.
• The Golden Fibre
http://www.bdcom-online.com/shathi/jute.htm
• Biotechnology in jute fibre processing
http://www.epbbd.com/month23/Background.htm
 Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.)

• fibre plant native to east-central Africa.

• common wild plant of tropical and subtropical Africa and
Asia
• grown for several thousand years for food and fibre
• unique combination of
long bast and short core fibres
• two crops/year in Malaysia
 Nettle (Urtica dioica)

• Nettles yield ~ 8-10 tonnes fibre/acre

http://jacksonsrow.topcities.com/tikun_olam/nettle.html
• far stronger than cotton but is finer than other bast fibres
such as hemp
• much more environmentally friendly fibre crop than
cotton, which requires more irrigation and agrochemical
input
 Nettle
• 24 v/o nettle/epoxy E/σ’ = 9 GPa/91 MPa
• 23 v/o nettle/phenolic E/σ’ = 5 GPa/13MPa
• 21 v/o flax/epoxy
“strength and stiffness
are more than twice as high”

Ann-Jeanette Merilä, Stinging nettle fibres as reinforcement in thermoset matrices,

MSc Engineering/Materials Technology, Luleå University of Technology
http://epubl.luth.se/1402-1617/2000/235/index-en.html
 Rules-of-mixture for NFRP
• Young’s modulus:
– Ec = κηdηlηoVfEf + VmEm

• Strength:
– σ’ = κVfσf’ + Vmσm*

• κ = fibre area correction factor

• ηd = fibre diameter distribution factor
 κ = fibre area correction factor
ηd = fibre diameter distribution factor
• κ corrects for true area or irregular CSA
when apparent fibre diameter is measured
• ηd = fibre diameter distribution factor
– data below from Christophe Baley at USB
Are natural fibres good?

Environmental issues
• Depletion of soil nutrients/fertiliser
• Competition from weeds/herbicides
• Competition from animals/pesticides
Economic issues
• Agricultural subsidies
• Dependence on weather
• Market price vs other producers
 Are natural fibres good?
• “natural fibre production requires less than 10 percent of
the energy used for production of PP fibres (around 90
GJ/tonne)”, but .....

JEG van Dam and HL Bos,

Consultation on natural fibres:
the environmental impact of hard fibres and jute in non-textile industrial applications
ESC-Fibres Consultation no 04/4, Rome, 15-16 December 2004.
 Are natural fibres good?

..... that data is total energy input

for jute fibre cultivation (excluding
field labour, retting and decortication)
when grown by numerous small farmers utilising labour
and animal power
with limited agrochemicals and machinery
 Are natural fibres good?
Data from TexFlax project thesis for flax:
• ploughed
• seed sown
• pesticide applied (twice)
• N applied
• P/K applied
• herbicide applied (twice)
• harvested
How much fuel went through the tractor, and
how much energy was in the sprayed materials?
 Life Cycle Assessment
• Four different phases [Brady]:
– Goal and scope definition:
in the context of the intended application.
– Inventory analysis:
collect data, quantifies relevant inputs and outputs.
– Impact assessment:
translates inventory analysis into impacts
evaluating significance of the respective impacts.
– Interpretation:
conclusions and recommendations for decision makers
Quantitative life cycle assessment (QLCA)
 Adisa Azapagic
• Environmental impact classification factors:
1. Non-Renewable/Abiotic Resource Depletion (NRADP)
2. Global Warming Potential (GWP)
3. Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP)
4. Acidification Potential (AP)
5. Eutrophication Potential (EP)
6. Photochemical Oxidants Creation Potential (POCP)
7. Human Toxicity Potential (HTP)
8. Aquatic Toxicity Potential (ATP)
 Nilmini’s interim analysis
Environmental Impact for Flax fibre:

Land clearance

Decortication
Dessication
Herbicides
Pesticides
Ploughing

Spinning
Fertiliser

Hackling
Rippling

Carding
Harvest
Sowing

Retting
Water
Environmental Impact Classification Factor
Acidification Potential (AP)
Aquatic Toxicity Potential (ATP)
Eutrophication Potential (EP)
Global Warming Potential (GWP)
Human Toxicity Potential (HTP)
Non-Renewable/Abiotic Resource Depletion (NRADP)
Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP)
Photochemical Oxidants Creation Potential (POCP)

Noise and Vibration

Odour
Loss of biodiversity

Very High Effect

Low Effect
No Effect

See also http://www.netcomposites.com/downloads/03Thurs_Summerscales.pdf - slide 15

 Environmental burdens: flax
• embodied energies for flax (no-till agriculture):
– 54 GJ/tonne for sliver (55 GJ/tonne for glass mat)
– 80 GJ/tonne for yarn (32 GJ/tonne for continuous glass)
minimum < middle < maximum
• no till < conservation agriculture
< mouldboard plough
• organic fertiliser < agro-chemicals
• biological control of pests
< pesticides
• water- < dew- < bio-retting
• sliver < spun yarn
 QLCA: Le Duigou vs Dissanayake

Key differences:
•Higher level of nuclear power in the French energy mix
•UK plants desiccated at mid-point flowering
but French plants allowed to set seed
•UK yield only 6000 kg/ha
but French yield 7500 kg/ha at harvest
•UK study excluded
photosynthesis and CO2 sequestration
•UK study allocated all burdens to fiber
French study allocated on mass of product
as a proportion of all (co-)products
 The future ?
• Extracting fibre without damage
• Effective coupling agents
– cellulose chemistry instead of silanes
• Environmental durability
– barriers to prevent moisture absorption
– sterilise fibres to prevent biodeterioration
• Quantitative Life Cycle Assessment (QLCA)
• Other issues ?
• BS8905 adds “Land Use” as 9th EICF
• growing food vs fuel, feedstock, fibre
 Bio-based resin systems
Thermoplastics
• CPLA (polylactide aliphatic copolymer)
• PCL (polycaprolactone)
• PGA (polyglycolicacid)
• PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoate)
– PHB (poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate)
– PHBV (polyhydroxybutyrate-valerate)
• PLA (polylactide)
• DuPontTM Sorona®
 Bio-based resin systems
Thermosets
• Acrylised epoxidised soybean oil
(Aropol Envirez 5000, UCB Ebecryl)
• Cashew Nut Shell Liquid (CNSL)
• Epoxidised linseed oil
.. and .. polycarboxylic acid anhydrides
• Partially norbornylized linseed oil
(Dilulin®)
• Rapeseed-oil derived resins
 Summary
• sustainability
• natural fibres
– bast (stem), leaf, seed, animal
– temperate or tropical zone
– growth, harvest, retting, separation, etc
• life cycle assessment (ISO 14040 series)
• environmental impacts (8 EICF + land use)
• bio-based resins