China reed

Corbiere-Nicollier et al. investigate transport pallets made of composites from China reed fiber used as a substitute for glass fiber [43]. The crucial factor of the assessment is the lifetime of the pallets the authors mention the need to optimize the process of fiber extraction in order to obtain a better material stiffness. For conventional pallets, a lifetime of 5 years is assumed. Environmental advantages for the transport pallets reinforced with China reed fiber are found if the pallet s lifetime is greater than 3 years. These advantages result from the substitution of the glass fiber production, from the reduction of polypropylene, and from the reduced weight of the pallet. For end-of-Ufe, incineration is the preferred option. 

Class fiber China reed fiber PP ABS Epoxy resin Nylon 66 Nylon 66 -E 30% GF... 

The biopolymers covered in this book chapter are Starch polymers, polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), polylactides (PLA), lignin-epoxy resins, epoxidised linseed oil and composites reinforced with natural fibres such as flax, hemp, and china reed (miscanthus). The first three materials are biodegradable while this is not the case for the remaining studied materials. 

Apart from some methodological shortcomings, three LCA studies evaluate products for which considerable technical problems related to production and product properties still need to be overcome. This is the case for the two china reed-based products studied by FAT/CARBOTECrf and for the transport pallet studied by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology . This calls firstly for further R D and secondly for caution when making use of the LCA results for these specific applications. 

Natural fiber reinforced polymer composites have attracted the attention of the research community [88] and extended to almost all the fields. Much work is done in the application of natural fiber as reinforcement in polymer composite [114]. Natural fibers are an attractive research area because they are eco-friendly, inexpensive, abundant and renewable, lightweight, have low density, high toughness, high specific properties, biodegradability and non-abrasive to processing characteristics, and lack of residues upon incineration [120, 119]. Natural fiber composites such as hemp fiber-epoxy, flax fiber-polypropylene (PP), and china reed fiber-PP are particularly attractive in automotive applications because of lower eost and lower density. 

Writing paper was first used in Egypt as far back as 2500-2000 BC, made from the papyrus reed. Paper manufacture began in China about AD 105. In 1690 the first American paper mill began its operation. Two recent dates of importance to modem paper technology are 1867, when Tilghman in the U.S. developed the sulfite process, and 1884, when Dahl in Germany discovered the kraft or sulfate process. 

Lee, B.Y.S., and Reed, R Jr. (1996) Degradable and Environment Responsive Explosives, Naval Air Warfare Center, Weapons Division (NAWCWPNS) TP-8282, April 1996, NAWC, China Lake, CA. 

Some of the earliest known apphcations of fibers date back to the ancient Egyptian and Babylonian civilizations. Papyrus was formed from the fibers of the papyrus reed. Linen fabrics were woven from flax fibers. Cotton fibers were used to make sail fiibric. Ancient China produced the first paper from cellulose fiber and perfected the use of silk fiber. 

We thank Prof Donald MeKean, Donald Robertson, Dr David Reed, Alan Taylor and Steve Hunter (all Edinburgh), Dr Hartmut Bogge, Dr Yuri Vishnevskiy, Christian Reuter, Anja Nieland, Jan-Hendrik Lamm, Dr Hans-Georg Stammler and Dr Andreas Mix (all Bielefeld), Prof Farideh Jalilehvand (Calgary, Canada) and Prof Shuiming Hu (Hefei, China) for the preparation and production of graphical material. 

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