Composite boards were fabricated using a heat press machine with flax fiber as the reinforcement material and polyactic acid fiber as the matrix. Mechanical properties of the material were tested, and the results indicated that the flax fiber volume fraction of 35% may be a better choice as far as the tensile and bending properties are concerned. Too low a flax volume fraction would reduce the reinforcing effect of the flax fiber. Too high a flax volume fraction may induce defective bonding between the fiber and the matrix. The orientation of the reinforcing fiber in the material played an important role in determining the mechanical behavior of the materials.
Schinner, G. , Brandt, J. and Richter, H. (1996). Recycling Carbon-fiber-reinforced Thermoplastic Composites, Journal of Thermoplastic Composite Materials, 9: 239-245.
2.
Netravali, A.N. , Huang, X.S. and Mizuta, K. (2007). Advanced Green Composites , Advanced Composite Materials, 16: 269-282.
3.
Brouwer, W.D. ( 2001). Natural Fiber Composites, Saving Weight and Cost with Renewable Materials, In: Thirteenth International Conference on Composite Materials, ID-1414, 25-29 June, Beijing, China.
4.
Hughes, M., Carpenter, J. and Hill, C. ( 2007). Deformation and Fracture Behaviour of Flax Fibre Reinforced Thermosetting Polymer Matrix Composites, Journal of Materials Science, 42: 2499-2511.
5.
Wong, S. and Shanks, R. ( 2008). Creep Behaviour of Biopolymers and Modified Flax Fiber Composites, Composite Interfaces, 15: 131-145.
6.
Kohler, W.H. , Shrikhande, P. and McHugh, A.J. (2005). Modeling Melt Spinning of PLA Fibers, Journal of Macromolecular Science, Part B Physics , 44: 185-202.
7.
Malmgren, T. , Mays, J. and Pyda, M. (2006). Charaterazation of Poly(Lactic Acid) by Size Exclusion Chromatography, Differential Refractometry, Light Scattering and Thermal Analysis, Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry , 83: 35-40.
8.
Day, M., Nawaby, A.V. and Liao, X. ( 2006). A DSC Study of the Crystallization Behavior of Polylactic Acid and its Nanocomposites, Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry, 86: 623-629.
9.
Huang, Y.Y. and Chung, T.W. ( 2001). Microencapsulation of Gentamicin in Biodegradable PLA and/or PLA/PEG Copolymer, Journal of Microencapsulation, 18: 457-465.
10.
Redaelli, A. (2006). Cosmetic Use of Polylactic Acid for Hand Rejuvenation: Report on 27 Patients, Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 5: 233-238.
11.
Tajitsu, Y. , Kawai, S., Kanesaki, M., Date, M. and Fukada, E. (2004). Microactuators with Piezoelectric Polylactic Acid Fibers - Toward the Realization of Tweezers for Biological Cells, Ferroelectrics, 304: 195-200.
12.
Takagi, H., Kako, S., Kusano, K. and Ousaka, A. ( 2007). Thermal Conductivity of PLA-Bamboo Fiber Composites, Advanced Composite Materials, 16: 377-384.
13.
Huda, M.S., Mohanty, A.K., Drzal, L.T., Schut, E. and Misra, M. ( 2005). ‘‘Green’’ Composites from Recycled Cellulose and Poly(Lactic Acid) Physical-mechanical and Morphological Properties Evaluation, Journal of Materials Science, 40: 4221-4229.
14.
Coichi, B., Yuichi, K., Keita, N. and Yoshio, A. ( 2007). Examination of Heat Resistant Tensile Properties and Molding Conditions of Green Composites Composed of Kenaf Fibers and PLA Resin , Advanced Composite Materials, 16: 361-376.
15.
Niklas, S. and Roshan, S. ( 1996). Fabrication and Mechanical Response of Commingled GF/PET Composites, Polymer Composites, 19: 360-369.
