Preparation, Microstructure, and Properties of Biofibers

Paradigm shift from energy consuming materials to sustainable materials has brought increasing importance of biomass utilization. Macro-, micro-, crystal structures and properties of biofibres, mainly on cellulose from natural plants, have been described in this chapter. The ultimate elastic modulus of natural cellulose is 138 GPa, which is far beyond those of typical inorganic substances such as aluminum, titanium, glass. In addition, the tensile strength is very high, the thermal expansion coefficient is very low, and it is biobased and biodegradable. These reveal that cellulose can be a good candidate to replace glass fiber. Compared with natural cellulosic fiber, superior properties of cellulose nanofiber have been described. All-cellulose composite, both reinforcement and matrix are cellulose, has also been reviewed.