Comparative study of the cutting of car interior trim panels reinforced by natural fibers

The use of natural fibers, such as flax, sisal, or kenaf to reinforce plastic body panels for automotive applications is being introduced for car interior trim parts such as door panels, hat shelves, roofing, etc. The benefits derived from using natural fibers instead of glass fibers are mainly ecological and economical. As a renewable product, natural fibers have a greater environmental interest than oil based plastics. Natural fibers can be recycled and reused in a better way than glass fibers. On the other hand, panels made of natural fibers have good mechanical properties but are lighter than glass fiber reinforced panels, which means lower fuel consumption and therefore cost savings. The aim of this work is to explore the capabilities of lasers to effectively cut these new types of natural fiber reinforced panels. A comparison between the abrasive water jet cutting and the use of a CO2 and Nd:YAG lasers is carried out. The experiments show that the laser can be used satisfactorily to cut the car interior panels reinforced by natural fibers.