A Review of the Use of Coconut Fiber in Cement Composites

Flávia Regina Bianchi Martinelli; Francisco Roger Carneiro Ribeiro; Markssuel Teixeira Marvila; Sergio Neves Monteiro; Fabio da Costa Garcia Filho; Afonso Rangel Garcez de Azevedo

doi:10.3390/polym15051309

A Review of the Use of Coconut Fiber in Cement Composites

Polymers (Basel). 2023 Mar 6;15(5):1309. doi: 10.3390/polym15051309.

Authors

Flávia Regina Bianchi Martinelli¹, Francisco Roger Carneiro Ribeiro², Markssuel Teixeira Marvila³, Sergio Neves Monteiro⁴, Fabio da Costa Garcia Filho⁴, Afonso Rangel Garcez de Azevedo⁵

Affiliations

¹ LAMAV-Advanced Materials Laboratory, Campos dos Goytacazes, State University of the Northern Rio de Janeiro, Campos dos Goytacazes 28013-602, RJ, Brazil.
² Civil Engineering Graduate Program, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre 90035-190, RS, Brazil.
³ CRP-Rio Paranaíba Campus, UFV-Federal University of Viçosa, Rio Paranaíba 38810-000, MG, Brazil.
⁴ Department of Materials Science, IME-Military Institute of Engineering, Rio de Janeiro 22290-270, RJ, Brazil.
⁵ LECIV-Civil Engineering Laboratory, UENF-State University of the Northern Rio de Janeiro, Campos dos Goytacazes 28013-602, RJ, Brazil.

Abstract

The use of plant fibers in cementitious composites has been gaining prominence with the need for more sustainable construction materials. It occurs due to the advantages natural fibers provide to these composites, such as the reduction of density, fragmentation, and propagation of cracks in concrete. The consumption of coconut, a fruit grown in tropical countries, generates shells that are improperly disposed of in the environment. The objective of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of the use of coconut fibers and coconut fiber textile mesh in cement-based materials. For this purpose, discussions were conducted on plant fibers, the production and characteristics of coconut fibers, cementitious composites reinforced with coconut fibers, cementitious composites reinforced with textile mesh as an innovative material to absorb coconut fibers, and treatments of coconut fiber for improved product performance and durability. Finally, future perspectives on this field of study have also been highlighted. Thus, this paper aims to understand the behavior of cementitious matrices reinforced with plant fibers and demonstrate that coconut fiber has a high capacity to be used in cementitious composites instead of synthetic fibers.

Keywords: cementitious matrix composite; coir fiber; vegetable fibers.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the State University of the Northern Fluminense (UENF), partially financed by CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brazil), and provided additional financial support by CNPq (Coordenação Nacional de Pesquisa) Code 309428/2020–3. The participation of A.R.G.d.A. was sponsored by FAPERJ through the research fellowships proc. nos. E-26/210.150/2019, E-26/211.194/2021, E-26/211.293/2021, and E-26/201.310/2021, and by CNPq through the research fellowship PQ2 307592/2021–9.