Cars from renewable materials
Andrzej K. Bledzki, Omar Faruk, Adam Jaszkiewicz
Quarterly No. 3, 2010 pages 282-288
DOI:
keywords: cars, biofibre, bio-based plastics, automotive interior component, automotive exterior component
abstract Biofiber and biopolymer based composites are enjoying a renaissance for a variety of reasons and they have developed significantly over the past few years especially due to their renewable nature. The increased fuel efficiency in automotive and a growing awareness in environmental preservation are leading to further developments. Biobased fibers exhibit decent price stability, being less dependent on the price of oil than other materials and their use should be highly encouraged from an economical point of view. Biocomposites are becoming attractive alternatives to glass fibre reinforced polymer composites in automotive industries due to significant weight and cost savings. Many automotive components (interior and exterior) are now made from biofibre reinforced composites materials which are mainly based on polypropylene with reinforcing biofibres jute, flax, hemp, kenaf and wood. However, further research is still required to overcome obstacles such as moisture absorption and increased long-term stability for use as exterior components. This paper has been arranged in a way to illustrate the development of biocomposites use in automotive sector with further opportunities.