Utilization of Banana Fiber-Reinforced Hybrid Composites in the Sports Industry

Abstract

The sports industry is an ever-growing sector worldwide. With technological advancements in information technologies, the sports industry has merged with the entertainment industry, reaching and influencing billions of people globally. However, to ensure and advance the safety, security, and sustainability of the sports industry, technological innovations are always needed in several manufacturing and materials processes to achieve cost-effectiveness, efficiency, durability, reusability, and recyclability of products used in this industry. For example, 90% of the field hockey equipment produced in the world comes from Sialkot, Pakistan. Most export quality field hockey equipment is currently produced via reinforcement of glass/carbon fibers in epoxy resin. The current study aimed to introduce new materials for field hockey equipment to reduce manufacturing costs and the environmental impact of synthetic materials, without comprising the quality of the final product. Our literature review on natural fibers revealed that they offer excellent and compatible mechanical properties. Based on extensive experimental studies, we concluded that banana fiber reinforced hybrid composites could be an alternative to pure glass fiber reinforced composites, with comparable and even higher load withstanding capabilities. Using banana fiber reinforced hybrid composites for the fabrication of hockey products would cut costs and lower the environmental impact stemming from the uses of biodegradable organic materials. It will also lead to the development of a domestic economy based on domestic resources.

A Review on Mechanical Performance of Hybrid Natural Fiber Polymer Composites for Structural Applications

“…Based on Rashid et al [ 241 ], treated banana/glass fiber biocomposites can withstand higher stresses in comparison with pure glass fiber composites. They discovered the higher flexural strength of hybrid banana/glass fiber biocomposites due to strong bonding between the plies.…”

Mechanical characterization of glass and jute fiber-based hybrid composites fabricated through compression molding technique

“…The minimum error was found for the GGJGG sequence, while the maximum error was observed for the GJJJG sequence. This error was due to voids, non-uniform fibers distribution, and possible layers delamination in the compression molding technique [4,13]. The comparison of force-displacement diagrams of experimental and numerical results for all the specimens are shown in Fig.…”

“…Recently, due to the development of novel materials and manufacturing processes, there has been an increasing need to utilize advanced manufacturing processes, materials and evaluate their mechanical behavior under extreme operating conditions [1,2]. Increasing interest has been observed to produce biodegradable materials for plenty of automotive parts rather than typically used glass, carbon, Kevlar, and other synthetic reinforcements that are hard to recycle [3,4]. Comfort, like noise reduction and vibration control inside the vehicle, increases the vehicle's apparent value for the customer and ultimately provides substantial benefits to the manufacturer [5].…”

The winners and losers in the race to environmental sustainability: a ranking of Summer Olympic International Federation progress

“…Al Rashid et al (2020) concluded that hybrid polymer matrix composites reinforced by banana fibers are structurally stronger than glass fiber reinforced by epoxy resin, whilst Castegnaro et al (2017) proved that bio-composite materials were a successful alternative to fibreglass.…”