Effect of Alkali and Permanganate Treatments on Leaf Fibers: Efficient Reinforcements to Be Used in Eco-Friendly Composites.

Natural fiber-reinforced composites could be obtained by utilizing agricultural wastes, fallen leaves, or abandoned materials as reinforcements after their usage as a way to reduce environmental impacts such as to stop deforestation, i.e., cutting down of plants and trees for their fibers, and in waste management, which includes recyling of natural wastes and minimizing the use of nonbiodegradable synthetic composites by replacing it with their natural fiber counterparts. As an outcome, leaves from a (Tc) tree grown in the Kanyakumari district that falls off in large quantities throughout the winter are gathered and examined. The leaves are treated with NaOH and KMnO. In this investigation, all three powdered samples (raw, alkali treated, and permanganate treated Tc leaf fibers) are sent to chemical analysis, powder X-ray diffraction (p-XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDAX), thermal analysis (TGA-DTA), and carbon hydrogen nitrogen sulfur (CHNS) analysis. The results of the research showed that the powdered Tc leaf samples had high levels of cellulose (≈ 50%), crystallinity index (≈ 50-65%), and crystallite size (≈ 3 nm). There are various vibrational bands associated with them. The rough surface of the raw and treated Tc powder samples and their particle size (≈ 50-100 μm), as revealed by the SEM images, might aid in good adherence with the matrix. According to EDAX and CHNS analyses, there is a high carbon content in all of the samples. The fibers have an activation energy (≈ 55-60 kJ/mol) and maximum temperature limit (≈ 500 °C) that are comparable to many other natural fibers. The density of Tc leaf fibers (≈ 0.2 g/cm) is very low and so could be used in lightweight composite applications. The chemical treatments enhanced the qualities of Tc fibers to a certain extent. In various polymers, rubber, or concrete matrices where the inclusion of natural fiber reinforcement is desired, all three samples could function as potential reinforcements.