• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.98-103
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• 2005

Anatomical properties of kenaf cultivated in Korea was investigated using light microscopy. Bast fiber, phloem ray and cortex parenchyma cell were observed in bast, and vessel, wood fiber and ray in core. A lot of solitary and multiple radial pores in core existed. The cell type of ray parenchyma in radial section was procumbent, upright and square cells. Uniseriate and multiseriate rays existed in tangential section. The layer of bast fiber in bast increased with increasing the growth period.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.111-120
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• 2016

BACKGROUND: Arsenic (As)-contaminated groundwater used for long-term irrigation has emerged as a serious problem by adding As to soils. Phytoremediation potential of fiber crops viz., kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.), mesta (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.), and jute (Corchorus capsularis L.) was studied to clean up As-contaminated soil.METHODS AND RESULTS: Varieties of three fiber crops were selected in this study. Seeds of kenaf, mesta, and jute varieties were germinated in As-contaminated soil. Uptake of As by shoot was significantly higher than that by root in the contaminated soil. In As-contaminated soil, kenaf and mesta varieties accumulated more As, than did jute varieties. In the plant parts above ground, mainly the shoots, the highest As absorption was recorded in kenaf cv. HC-3, followed by kenaf cv. HC-95. Kenaf varieties produced more biomass. In terms of higher plant biomass production, and As absorption, kenaf varieties showed considerable potential to remediate As-contaminated soil.CONCLUSION: The overall As absorption and phytoremediation potentiality of plant varieties were in the order of kenaf cv. HC-3 > kenaf cv. HC-95 > mesta cv. Samu-93 > jute cv. CVE-3 > jute cv. BJC-7370. All varieties of kenaf, mesta, and jute could be considered for an appropriate green plant-based remediation technology in As-contaminated soil.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.270-275
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• 2016

High density polyethylene (HDPE)/kenaf fiber (KF) composites included two types of KF with different lengths were fabricated by using a twin screw extruder. A thermally expandable microcapsule (EMC) was used to form HDPE/KF. The KF lengths were 0.3 mm and 3 mm. The contents of KF and EMC were fixed at 20 wt% and 5 wt%, respectively. From FT-IR data of KF, which underwent chemical treatment, peaks around 1700 and $1300cm^{-1}$ decreased. This might be caused by the reduction of lignin and hemicellulose due to the chemical treatment of KF. Based on the specific gravity, thermal stability and tensile property, physical properties of the composites with a 3 mm fiber were good. However, if the fiber is longer, poor appearance might be caused due to the thermal degradation during processing. Thus, the adequate length of KF should be chosen to maintain the appearance and physical properties for industrial applications of HDPE/KF/EMC composites. The tensile strength for 0.3 mm fiber treated with chemicals increased slightly.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.93-103
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• 2022

Currently, biofibers are used as a reinforcement in polymer composites for structural elements and construction materials instead of the synthetic fibers which cause environmental problems and are expensive. One of the chemicals with a pH close to neutral that can be potentially used as a modified fiber material is sodium chloride (NaCl). Therefore, this study aims to investigate the characteristics of a composite board made from NaCl-treated kenaf fiber. A completely randomized design method was used with consideration of two factors: the content of NaCl in the treatment solution (1 wt%, 3 wt%, and 5 wt%) and the duration of immersion of fibers in the solution (1 h, 2 h, and 3 h). The NaCl treatment was conducted by soaking the fibers in the solution for different durations. The fibers were then rinsed with water until the pH of the water reached 7 and subsequently dried inside an oven at 80℃ for 6 h. Kenaf fiber and epoxy were mixed manually with the total loading of 20 wt% based on the dry weight of the fiber. Physical and mechanical properties of the fibers were then evaluated based on JIS A 5908 particleboard standards. The results showed that increasing NaCl content in the fiber treatment solution can increase the physical and mechanical properties of the composite board. The properties of fibers treated with 5 wt% NaCl for 3 h were superior with a modulus of elasticity of 2.085 GPa, modulus of rupture of 19.77 MPa, internal bonding of 1.8 MPa, thickness swelling of 3%, and water absorption of 10.9%. The contact angle of untreated kenaf fibers was 104°, which increased to 80° and 73° on treatment with 1 wt% and 5 wt% NaCl for 3 h, respectively.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.31 no.7
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• pp.1119-1127
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• 2007

Nonwovens have been widely used in various regions from the households to the industrial, agricultural and medical goods. Synthetic fibers have been used for source of nonwovens commonly because of their useful and economic properties. They are not only main factor causing environmental problems but also spend huge cost to renew the environmental disruption by them. Nonwovens must have both cost-competitiveness and environment-friendly property to be the desirable sources in 21th centuries. For meet these needs, it is suitable for the times that economical and environmentally-safe kenaf fibers would be used as raw materials of nonwovens. Kenaf and polyester fibers were blended in 4 types of ratio : 0/100, 20/80, 40/60, 60/40 were needle-punched. The nonwovens properties such as color values, surface appearance, strength, elongations, stiffness, moisture regain, water and oil absorbency, and electrification were tested. As the results, tensile and tear strengths, water and oil absorbency were maximum at 20/80 kenaf/polyester blend nonwoven, because of effecting by nonwoven structure and fiber properties. The moisture regain were increased according to kenaf were blended and the eletrification reduced in proportion to the kenaf fibers by chemical property of fiber composed nonwovens.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.471-476
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• 2022

PP/KF felt was used to load a high content of kenaf fiber (KF) into polypropylene (PP), and polyurethane (PU) was used as a binder. In order to find an optimum composition ratio of the PU binder, the flexural strength of the PP/KF/PU felt composite according to the isocyanate and polyol ratio was evaluated. PP-g-MAH grafted with maleic anhydride (MAH) was applied as a compatibilizer. Tensile, flexural, and impact properties were evaluated to consider changes in mechanical properties of the PP/KF/PU felt composite, and the properties were improved.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.50 no.6
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• pp.392-403
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• 2022

Currently, composite board manufacturing using natural fibers has the potential to expand owing to environmental awareness. To produce a composite board, treatment is required to improve the mechanical and physical properties of the natural fibers. In this study, sodium chloride (NaCl) was used for the chemical treatment. However, studies on chemical treatments using NaCl are limited. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of kenaf fibers after NaCl treatment. The NaCl treatment concentrations were 1, 3, and 5 wt.% at room temperature, with soaking durations of 1, 2, and 3 h. The tensile strength, strain, and Young's modulus were measured to evaluate the mechanical properties of the fibers. The fiber bundle diameter, weight change owing to treatment, and contact angle were determined to analyze the effect of NaCl treatment. The kenaf fiber bundle treated with 5 wt.% NaCl for 3 h exhibited the highest tensile strength, Young's modulus, reduction in fiber bundle diameter, weight change, and decrease in contact angle compared to those of untreated fiber bundles. The tensile properties of the fiber bundle exhibited a tendency to decrease with increasing fiber bundle diameter. Increasing the soaking duration from 1 to 2 h did not result in a significant decrease in the fiber bundle diameter or an increase in tensile strength. However, a further increase in the soaking duration from 2 to 3 h resulted in a considerable decrease in the fiber bundle diameter and an increase in the tensile strength.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.291-297
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• 1989

It was indicated that natural fiber crops Ln Korea have been major crops, such as cotton, flax, ramie and Kenaf. The major varieties andagronomic characterics are summarized as follows. Cotton variety, Mokpo 6 is long fiber length and, is high lint yield, flax variety, Wiera is hiTh amount of dry stem and grains weiTht. On the other hand, kenaf variety, Suweon 2 is high dry fiber weight and fiher ratio.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.11-18
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• 2008

Anatomical characteristics of volumetric composition, fiber length, vessel diameter, and crystalline properties of cellulose in kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) planted in the reclaimed land of Buan-si, Korea were examined to understand the growth characteristics using a light microscopy and an X-ray diffraction method. The samples of kenaf were taken from six positions (3 cm, 35 cm, 70 cm, 105 cm, 280 cm, and 320 cm) of each stem over the growth period (July, August, September, and October) after seeding in the mid-May. In the kenaf stem, phloem constituted 10 to 15 %, xylem 66 to 82%, and pith 7 to 19%. The ray, bast fiber, and remainder comprised 50%, 20%, and 30% of the phloem, respectively. The volume of vessel, ray, and fiber in the xylem was approximately 10, 15, and 75%, respectively. The proportion of cell wall was 30.92% at the base of stem and 46.40% at the top of stem, respectively. The average length of bast fiber and xylem fiber was about 2.8 mm and 0.9 mm, respectively. Radial and tangential diameters of vessel increased with the increase of growth period, while they decreased with increasing the stem height. Relative crystallinity ranged from 70 to 79% in phloem and from 50 to 56% in xylem. Cellulose crystallite width was about 3 nm both in the phloem and xylem. Thus, the volumetric composition and cell dimensions in the phloem and xylem appeared to be varied with the growth period and the stem height.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society For Composite Materials Conference
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• 2004.10a
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• pp.92-95
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• 2004

Interfacial shear strength (IFSS) of environmentally- friend natural fiber reinforced polymer composites playa very important role in controlling the overall mechanical properties. In this work the IFSS of Ramie and Kenaf fibers/epoxy systems were evaluated using the combination of micromechanical technique, microdroplet test to find out an optimal condition in accordance with final purpose by comparing to each other. Clamping effect on fiber elongation was determined as well. In addition, the mechanical properties of the natural fibers were investigated using single fiber tensile test and analyzed statistically by both uni- and bimodal Weibull distributions. Microfailure modes of different natural fiber structures were observed using optical microscope.