Printable highly transparent natural fiber composites

Abstract

In this study, we report the development of printable highly transparent natural fiber-reinforced composites based on raw flax fibers. The prepared composites exhibit superior transparency (>90% light transmittance), and the tensile performance is competitive to synthetic fiber-based counterparts. They also reveal excellent printability (<300 µm resolution) in additive manufacturing (AM) processes, allowing the fabrication of functional devices in multiplex geometries using plant-based materials. The findings indicate a novel and sustainable method to engineer transparent composites with excellent mechanical and processing characteristics.