Extraction and characterization of steam-exploded silane-treated cellulosic natural Vernonia elaeagnifolia long fibre

Steam explosion is a highly successful and environmentally benign fibre-treating method for lignocellulosic fibers that can significantly improve the fibre's properties. The research focuses on utilizing sustainable long-cellulosic natural fibre material to benefit the textile, fibre-strengthened polymer, and engineering industries. A cellulosic natural fibre was extracted from Vernonia elaeagnifolia and further, it was steam exploded and silane-treated with various chemical concentrations. Chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and SEM examination were used to examine the crystallinity and check the morphological properties of raw Vernonia elaeagnifolia fibre (VEF) and steam-exploded silane-treated Vernonia elaeagnifolia fibres. The chemical analysis shows that steam-exploded silane treatments of VEFs removed lignin, hemicelluloses, and other extractives. The highest crystallinity of 75.86% was found in 13% of steam-exploded silane-treated VEF and for 5% of steam-exploded silane-treated VEF, it was about 70.22%, which is confirmed through the XRD analysis. The tensile strength of steam-exploded 5% silane-treated VEF was 470.67 MPa, while Young's modulus was 18.7 GPa. The obtained result suggests that steam-exploded silane-treated VEFs are suitable fibres to strengthen polymer composite materials in a sustainable way.