Morphological, Mechanical, and Physical Properties of Four Bamboo Species

Bamboo among other plants has unique properties and massive variety. The properties of bamboo species vary between species and along their culms. The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of four bamboo species: Dendrocalamus pendulus (DP), Dendrocalamus asper (DA), Gigantochloa levis (GL), and Gigantochloa scortechinii (GS), and their three portions (bottom (B), middle (M), and top (T)). The number of fibre strands in vascular bundles and the single fibres extracted from every portion was studied. The distribution of fibres varied along the bamboo culms and between species. The DP species showed the highest water content and water absorption and the lowest mechanical properties. The DA species exhibited the best mechanical and physical properties. Moreover, the bottom portion of every species indicated the highest aspect ratio and tensile properties. The results indicated that before the application of bamboo culms in composite materials, the bamboo species should be characterized so that it can be utilised effectively as a renewable reinforcement in composites.