Effects of Alkaline Treatments on the Tensile Strength of Napier Grass Fibres

Abstract

This paper presents the experiment test of the Napier grass fibres to determine the tensile strength of the Napier grass fibre. . Napier grass fibre is a natural source of fibre which is extracted from the internodes of Napier grass stems. Napier grass fibres were extracted trough conventional water retting process. However, the main disadvantages of natural fibres in composites are the poor compatibility between fibre and matrix and the relative high moisture absorption. These Napier grass fibre then undergoes alkaline chemical treatment using sodium hydroxide (NaOH) to improve the surface roughness and to minimize the water absorption into the cellulose. The treatment is conducted with different concentration of NaOH at 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% respectively. The single fibre tensile test was conducted using Instron micro tester. Based on the tests conducted, the results show that the fibre treated 10% concentrations yield the strongest tensile test compared to untreated Napier grass fibre.