Characterization of industrial discarded fruit wastes (Tamarindus Indica L.) as potential alternate for man-made vitreous fiber in polymer composites
Introduction
In recent years, natural fibers are gaining momentum as reinforcement for polymer matrix composite due to its competent physical and mechanical properties. Moreover their availability, non-toxicity, light weight, low cost, high specific stiffness, recyclability, biodegradability and economic viability draw greater attention from researchers and industrialists (Boopathi et al., 2012; Thakur and Singha, 2010; Cai et al., 2015; Porras et al., 2015; Scarponi and Messano, 2015). European Union has accelerated the use of natural fiber reinforced plastics in automobiles through a legislation (Cai et al., 2015). Fibers extracted from agricultural residues such as vegetable bio-mass, woodland residues and farming deposits are rich in cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin etc. and are termed as lignocellulose fibers (Ku et al., 2011; Hamza et al., 2013; Uma Maheswari et al., 2012). These lignocellulosic fibers are obtained from bio-sources such as bast, foliage, fruit, kernel, timber, farmed excess, lawn, etc. (Tomczak et al., 2007; Youssef Habibi et al., 2008). Use of these fibers for industrial application to make composite sheets, pipes, structures, etc. got into full swing in the 20th century to be called as cellulosic century (Amirthalingam et al., 2012; Jawaid and Abdul Khalil, 2011). Moreover, natural fibers possess comparable or even better mechanical properties like that of glass or aramid fibers (Alfredo et al., 2015; Rojo et al., 2015).
Synthetic fibers such as glass, aramid, ceramic, carbon, etc., are toxic by nature causing severe health issues such as mainly cancer, skin disease, allergy, etc. in prolong exposure (Jawaid and Abdul Khalil, 2011; Marcia et al., 2009). Therefore as a viable alternative, natural fibers extracted from Linum usitatissimum, Cannabis Sativa, Pinus sylvestris, Cocos nucifera, Corchorus olitorius, Hibiscus sabdariffa, Hibiscus cannabinus, Grewia optiva, saccaharum cilliare, Agave sisalana, Boehmeria nivea are being experimented as a reinforcement in polymer composites (Thakur et al., 2014a). In this line, the leftovers from agro-industries bids a number of advantages due to the presence of reactive functional groups, high carbon content, sufficient thermal stability, and mechanical properties. They can be tailored through chemical transformations for continuous production as a useful reinforcing material to polymer composites industries. Preparation of such novel materials from lignin based agro residues not only reduce the cost of polymer composite materials but also addresses the menace of agro waste disposal in a valuable manner (Thakur et al., 2014b). One such type of fiber, which is discarded or under-utilized in enormous amount as an agro waste from food processing industries is Tamarindus Indica L. (Uma Maheswari et al., 2012).
Tamarind is a dicotyledonous plant which is a native of tropical Africa and widely cultivated for its edible sour fruit pulp in India for making ‘Indian Curries’ (Fabiana et al., 2009; Jayaramudu et al., 2009; Veluraja et al., 1997). It belongs to Fabaceae or Leguminosae family under Caesaplinioideae subfamily with a scientific name, Tamarindus Indica L. It is a multi-purpose plant which grows to a height of 25 m with approximately 1 m trunk diameter. It lives for 200 years with an annual fruit yield of 150–500 kg per tree and an estimated production of 3,00,000 tones per year in India alone (Veluraja et al., 1997; Agarwal et al., 2006).Tamarind fruits and leaves have medicinal values to treat malarial fever, gastric disorders, bilious vomiting, datura poisoning, alcoholic intoxication, eye diseases, etc. (Panara et al., 2014; Martinello et al., 2006). It starts to bear fruit in its fourth year and takes about 245 days to ripe from its flowering stage. The fruit is reddish brown in colour with six to eight seeds and turns black with an aroma when matures (Martinello et al., 2006). When the fruits are ripe, the hard pod shells are removed and discarded. The fruit pulp after removing the seeds is used as the chief acidulant in the preparation of foods, spices, etc. (Landi Librandi et al., 2007). A substance known as ‘jellose’ is extracted from the seeds, which is a polysaccharide with gel forming characteristics. It has found application in both food and other industries due to its high tannin content. Industrial application of seed powder includes sizing of textile, paper and jute, leather treatment, glue making, as a stabilizer in brick industry, binder for sawdust briquettes, etc. The pulpy nature of fruit is the major edible portion and they are held together along with the seeds by the fruit fibers of diameter ranging from 0.564 mm to 0.789 mm.
Utilizing abundantly available discarded light weight natural fiber, from the agro industries as a potential replacement for man-made harmful synthetic fibers for industrial application, requires comprehensive characterization. In this study one such lignocellulosic fiber from tamarind fruit leftover, named as Tamarind Fruit Fiber (TFF) is investigated anatomically, morphologically, physico-mechanically, chemically and thermally to ascertain its feasibility as a reinforcement material for polymer composite. The high specific strength along with its thermal stability and bonding characteristics are on the favorable side for this novel fruit fiber.
Section snippets
Material collection and extraction of fiber
The tamarind trees are planted in farms for its fruit traditionally, which are used in food processing, medical and tobacco industries. The outer fruit shell and the fruit fibers are removed to extract the seeds and fruit pulp. The seeds are used in textiles, paper and explosive industries, whereas the fruit pulp is used for edible purposes. The TFF discarded from fruit industries located in Kanyakumari district of Tamilnadu, India are collected in bulk quantities, weighing approximately of 10
Chemical analysis of TFF
The chemical composition influences the mechanical, moisture absorption, morphological and bonding characteristics of the fiber which is reflected in polymer composite material when used as reinforcement (Beakou et al., 2008). Moreover, the chemical composition of lignocellulose fibers differs among species and sometimes within different portions of the same plant itself (Jawaid and Abdul Khalil, 2011; Faruka et al., 2012). TFF has a cellulose content 72.84 wt.%, which is greater than most of
Challenges in industrial applications
Bio materials are incorporated into composite materials as much as possible to reduce the use of non-degradable polymeric material for sustainable development without compromising strength and durability. Due to its comparable properties, bio-fibers such as sisal, coir, hemp, oil palm, and fruit fibers are being used to make polymer composite for automotive sector and interior works (John and Thomas, 2008). The major obstacle for scaling up the production is its processing cost. Moreover, the
Conclusions
Comprehensive characterization of a potential natural fiber, TFF for polymer composite reinforcement has brought forth very promising results. Utilizing discarded agro waste for industrial applications greatly reduces the harmful influences of synthetic fibers and promotes ecofriendly manufacturing practices. The physical and mechanical tests have shown high specific strength for TFF, which is due to its high cellulose content. Moreover the presence of lignin gives enough stiffness and the low
Acknowledgement
The first author thanks the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India for providing INSPIRE fellowship to pursue his research.
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