Characterization of flax fiber reinforced soy protein resin based green composites modified with nano-clay particles

In this research, fully environment-friendly, sustainable and biodegradable 'green' composites were fabricated using modified soy protein concentrate (SPC) resins and flax yarns and fabrics. The modified SPC resin was prepared by blending SPC with nano-clay particles, and then cross-linked using glutaraldehyde. The modified SPC resin showed significantly improved mechanical properties. Flax fiber was used as the reinforcement, in both yarn and fabric forms, individually, to fabricate 'green' composites. The unidirectional flax yarn reinforced SPC resin composites showed longitudinal tensile failure stress of 298 MPa and Young's Modulus of 4.3 GPa. These 'green' composites also exhibited excellent flexural properties in the longitudinal direction. The flexural stress was 117 MPa and the flexural modulus was 7.6 GPa. Flax fabric reinforced composites had failure stress of 62 MPa and 82 MPa in the warp and weft directions, respectively. The Young's Modulus values, in both directions, were around 1.2 GPa. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.