Sugar palm (Arenga pinnata) is a multipurpose palm species from which a variety of foods and beverages, timber commodities, biofibres, biopolymers and biocomposites can be produced. Recently, it is being used as a source of renewable energy in the form of bio-ethanol via fermentation process of the sugar palm sap. Although numerous products can be produced from sugar palm, three products that are most prominent are palm sugar, fruits and fibres. This paper focuses mainly on the significance of fibres as they are highly durable, resistant to sea water and because they are available naturally in the form of woven fibre they are easy to process. Besides the recent advances in the research of sugar palm fibres and their composites, this paper also addresses the development of new biodegradable polymer derived from sugar palm starch, and presents reviews on fibre surface treatment, product development, and challenges and efforts on properties enhancement of sugar palm fibre composites.

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It is a challenging task to advance the excellent strength and structural performance of sandwich structures, while continuing to reduce the weight and cost parameters. Thousands of researchers have studied and developed the core structural innovation with periodical achievements. This review paper concentrates on the core structural trends and impact response of sandwich panels, which highlights the novel design concepts and impact failure modes. Three kinds of core structures have been classified, which are foam-core, two- and three-dimensional periodic cores. It is shown that the core structure of sandwich panels plays a vital role in structural performance and applications. Three common types of loading conditions have been considered, i.e. compression, projectile impact and three-point bending. Examples of novel core structures are further studied and summarised under corresponding impact loadings. Recent applications of sandwich structures are briefly concentrated on aerospace, automotive, marine and civil engineering areas. Furthermore, future research and development prospect of sandwich structures are suggested and predicted.

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The aim of this study to investigate the physical properties of short pineapple leaf fibre (SPALF) reinforced high impact polystyrene (HIPS) composites. Three different sizes of the fibre were used in this study which was 10-40mesh, 40-60mesh and 60-80mesh. A five different fibre contents were used in this study which was 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50%. The fabricated SPALF/HIPS composites were used melt mixing and compression moulding. The physical properties of SPALF/HIPS composites such as water absorption, thickness swelling, melt flow index (MFI), and density board of composites were studied. The result showed that the addition of the SPALF was decreased the physical properties compare to pure HIPS (0% SPALF).