Morphological, acoustical, mechanical and thermal properties of sustainable green Yucca (Y. gloriosa) fibers: an exploratory investigation

Ebrahim Taban; Ramazan Mirzaei; Mohammad Faridan; Ehsan Samaei; Fatemeh Salimi; Ali Tajpoor; Mehran Ghalenoei

doi:10.1007/s40201-020-00513-9

Morphological, acoustical, mechanical and thermal properties of sustainable green Yucca (Y. gloriosa) fibers: an exploratory investigation

J Environ Health Sci Eng. 2020 Jul 16;18(2):883-896. doi: 10.1007/s40201-020-00513-9. eCollection 2020 Dec.

Authors

Ebrahim Taban¹, Ramazan Mirzaei¹, Mohammad Faridan², Ehsan Samaei³, Fatemeh Salimi⁴, Ali Tajpoor⁴, Mehran Ghalenoei⁵

Affiliations

¹ Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Department of occupational Health engineering, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
² Department of Occupational Health and Safety at Work Engineering, School of Health and Nutrition, Nutritional Health Research Centre, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran.
³ Department of Occupational Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.
⁴ Department of Occupational Health Engineering, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
⁵ Department of Occupational Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran.

Abstract

Background: The objective of this study was to evaluate the acoustical, morphological, mechanical and thermal properties of fibers extracted from the leaves of Yucca (Y. gloriosa) shrub.

Methods: Several tests were performed on either untreated or alkali-treated (5% NaOH) fibers. The chemical analysis of the fibers was performed to determine their lignin, cellulose, hemicellulose, wax and moisture content. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analysis were respectively employed to chemically and thermally analyze the fibers. The microscopic examination was also carried out using scanning electron microscope (SEM). INSTRON universal testing machine and an impedance tube system were employed for measuring the tensile properties of the fibers and the sound absorption coefficient values of the samples fabricated from the same fibers, respectively.

Results: The results from the experiments revealed that the fibers have low density (1.32 g/cm3) and higher cellulose content (66.36 wt.%,). The mechanical characterization of these fibers also confirmed they are similar to the other lignocellulose fibers used for the reinforcement of polymer matrix composites. The tensile strength test conducted on Yucca fibres showed that mechanical properties of alkali treated fibers are superior to the untreated fibers. The thermal analysis also demonstrated that the alkali treated fibres can thermally withstand temperatures of up to 364 °C which confirms the fact that the thermal stability of fibers was improved by alkali treatment.

Conclusion: Fibers extracted from the leaves of Yucca demonstrated fair amounts of mechanical and thermal resistance and strength. The samples fabricated from Yucca fibers demonstrated fair levels of sound absorption coefficients particularly at higher frequency ranges which are typical to the other natural fibers. The possible use of Yucca fibers as either a reinforcing agent for composites or a sound absorbing medium is highly promising.

Keywords: Acoustic absorption coefficient; Mechanical properties; Morphological properties; Polyvinyl alcohol; Thermos gravimetric analysis; Yucca fiber.